Important Principles
by DamselOnDrums
Summary: When single mothers and their daughters are being slain all over the DC metropolitan area, the only thing to do is go undercover, and the entire BAU knows it. But when a family member of one volunteers, some have their doubts. How can one girl do this?
1. Chapter 1

_Hello, everybody! It's Taylor here, in case you're new with me. So, this story has been bouncing around in my head for the longest time, and I finally got down to writing it... On my iPod. Needless to say it took me about an hour and a half to edit it. Uuumm... There are no real pairings other than JJ/Will, although there will probably a hint of Hotch/Prentiss. I really like this story for some reason; I think it's definitely one of my better pieces. It took me about an hour to write the first chapter, so it was very natural. One thing I do stress is that I haven't been watching Criminal Minds from the very beginning. The first episode I saw of it was season 4, I think, so I've been watching seasons 2, 3, 4, and 5 online (I saw the very first episode and decided that I hate Elle, so I avoid season 1). Also, there are some references to s few episodes, not major, but there are some, so if you haven't seen at least season 4 and don't want little spoilers, don't read._

_So, anyway, I really hope you like this. Oh, and I took A LOT of creative licenses with this story, because I am clearly not smart. I don't know if this could actually happen, but you know the BAU - always twisting the rules a bit. I know next to nothing about how the FBI operates, nor how the layout of Washington DC and the surrounding area is. Please bear with me here. Give this little one a shot._

_**Disclaimer: **_**I don't own Criminal Minds. If I did, AJ Cook and Paget Brewster wouldn't be leaving.**

* * *

**Chapter One**

_"Important principles may, and must, be inflexible." -Abraham Lincoln_

"Reid, you can't possibly be serious about this!" Hotch nearly threw his hands up in frustration, instead running them through his graying hair. He was almost livid with the mere prospect of his idea, let alone going through with it. "This killer is extremely dangerous enough to US as it is, there is absolutely no way I'm endangering a citizen as well."

"But sir, think of it this way, in the capable hands of either Prentiss or JJ there's no way they could get hurt. You know full well of how good they are as agents, as well as people. How could you not trust them enough to let one go undercover to catch this guy?"

"I trust them with my team, and with the lives of the public, however this is entirely different. The unsub will be trying to kill them specifically, zoning in on them alone. It's too dangerous to let a citizen get involved. No matter how much I trust all of you, I just can't take that big of a risk."

"What if someone volunteered, knowing the risks and signing a contract?" asked a female voice from the doorway of the room. All heads immediately snapped in the direction of the door to see dusty-blonde haired girl with eyes that matched the color of a florescent green sign. She was wearing street clothes - tight skinny jeans, a marble grey wife beater, and purple and black basketball shoes. She stood only 5'3", and it didn't take a profiler to know she was fourteen. "I want to help you guys. Because I was an ass. I have nowhere to go; I'm a ward of the state. I have nothing to lose and I need to help you. Please."

"I appreciate your effort, but it's simply too dangerou-"

"With all due respect, _sir_," she said through gritted teeth, practically spitting out her last word. "I want to help. The FBI needs to find this son of a bitch, and if I'm not mistaken, this is your only hope. This might be your last chance to get him until he moves again."

He sighed a little; trying to hide the fact he knew she was right. "I can't. I just can't," he muttered.

"If it makes you feel any better, my mom always said my middle name was Danger," she replied with a shrug, sliding her hands into her back pockets.

Hotch turned his back to her, looking over his team. Prentiss had the day off, and Garcia had popped in to sit in on the debate. Reid was standing, his face frozen on a look of concentrated adamancy. Morgan was leaning back in his chair now; eyebrows raised high into his dark forehead. JJ looked conflicted, but more surprised by the girl than disapproving. Rossi had is arms crossed over his chest, face stone cold, showing no emotion, although Hotch knew he didn't like the idea. Garcia just looked fascinated by it all, mouth open slightly, eyes flicking from person to person. He knew he had probably just lost a poll that was never taken.

He sucked in a breath quietly. "Let me call in Prentiss. We need a pair of fresh eyes," he said, turning back and brushing past the girl.

"Are you sure about this, Bethany?" JJ asked, in a caring tone.

"After what this guy did to my aunt and my cousin? Positive."

"You could get really hurt, or _killed_," Rossi interjected, eyebrows furrowing.

"It's better than living in a state house," the young one answered, with another shrug. She stepped further into the room and leaned against the glass of the windows. She sighed. "It'll get me away from that place as long as possible."

"So you know what you're getting yourself into?" he pressed.

"Of course I do," she snapped. "Do you know how long it takes to be adopted? Do you know what those crappy houses are like to live in? I'm fourteen, Sir, meaning there's almost no chance of me getting adopted at all. Everyone wants the little kids. Trust me, I've been there, and I don't intend on going back."

Just when Garcia was about to jump in to break the tension a bit, Hotch came back in a huff. Aside from Bethany's, everyone's eyes were on him. "That was fast," Penelope commented.

"That's because I was all ready here," Prentiss said, coming in behind him. "Thanks, Derek."

"Thought you should be here to decide," he replied, sitting up a little straighter. "We need to figure this out, together. Now, what does everyone think? I, for one, think this could work. I'm not big on letting Bethany be bait, but I do think she has a point."

"Well, she'll be with one of us, so I really think she can do this," JJ said, looking past Hotch to Bethany.

"I think this is suicide," Rossi told her, boldly. "You're asking to be killed."

"She will be fine, Rossi," Reid countered, with a tight jaw.

"We can't guarantee anything, Spencer," Hotch told him, eyelids dangerously close to 'the stare'.

"I'm really sorry, hun," Garcia said to her, "But I would hate to see you throw yourself into a heap of trouble."

Bethany nodded solemnly, eyes shifting nervously to Emily, arms nervously crossing over her chest. Emily could see right away how determined she was, eyes filled with hope, but they silently pleaded with her. It was rare that she was the one caught in the middle; that was usually Garcia's domain. She shifted her weight a little in her black boots she regretted wearing, mind skimming through the possibilities.

After a minute, the corners of her mouth twitched upwards a tiny fraction. "If you feel like you can handle this, then what the hell. The second you change your mind, though, you're done."

Caught in the moment, Bethany rushed forward and threw her arms around the special agent. When she realized this, she quickly retracted her arms and took a few steps back. "Don't worry, you won't regret this. I promise."

Hotch looked agitated, but didn't object. "Take a seat." When she obliged, settling into a seat beside JJ, he continued. "Since you seem so adamant about this, I see you realize the risks? Just to be clear."

"One hundred percent, sir."

"Before we let you take part, you must pass a standard gun test as a precaution, just to know how to use one, if the situation arises. A physical preformed by one of our resident physicians is necessary, and you will also need to know your mother figure like you would actually know your mother, clear?"

"Crystal." The whole time he was speaking, she looked him directly in the eye, showing not fear, but amazing strength; it took guts to stare down Aaron Hotchner.

"Hotch, take it easy. You're gonna scare the poor kid," Prentiss scolded, but the words were just empty. "Look, Bethany. JJ or I will be taking good care of you. All you have to do is find out who this guy is. When you do, you tell us, no excuses. He may be using another child, around your age. Most likely a good-looking, fifteen year old boy. You've got to be on your toes 24/7. But you've got our entire team here for you, okay?"

She nodded, facing her as she spoke. "I can do this."

"We know you can, kid," Morgan told her, arms folded on the table. "But just in case, we'll have agents stationed all around you at all times, so you'll never be alone."

"We've got a lot to do. JJ, can you do this?"

She looked at her boss with a sad smile. "I would, but Will's out of town for the week, and I've got Henry. I'm sorry," she replied.

"Prentiss?"

She smiled down at the girl from a few feet away. "Sure."

"All right. Morgan, can you take her down to the shooting range to get her cleared up there?" Hotch looked less than enthusiastic about letting a fourteen year old girl even hold a gun, let alone shoot one. Morgan, on the other hand, looked rather excited as he nodded his agreement. "Garcia, come up with good aliases for them. JJ let Agent Strauss know what's going on. Reid, I need you to pull every string we have to get that 24 hour watch. Rossi, you can meet me in my office in ten. And Prentiss, we need to talk."

One by one the team disbursed, leaving only the head of the team and Emily Prentiss behind. He didn't look at her for a few moments, rather rubbed his temples, mumbling something under his breath, and starting to pace in circles over the carpet. She leaned against the wall, arms crossed over her chest and expression not of surprise. "Well...?"

He sighed heavily, ceasing his leg movements. "Prentiss... I need you to protect this girl like your life depends on it, because it might as well. If she gets hurt, I get fired and you very well could be out of a job. I want you to know where she is at all times and be there as much as you can. She needs to be a part of you now."

She held up a hand to stop him. "Hotch, please. I will gaurd Bethany like my life depends on it, you know why? Because if she gets hurt, it's on my watch and I don't know if I'll be able to forgive myself. She will be stuck to me like gorilla glue. So, if that's what this lecture is about, you really don't have to finish. She will be perfectly fine, okay? You just need to relax a little."


	2. Chapter 2

_Wow, I was pleasently surprised by the amount of feedback I got - alerts, reviews, favoriting! All I have to say is **thank you all soo so much!**__ This chapter is more of a filler, as is the next, but trust me, the action is coming. I'm actually itching to start writing it! So, anyway, here's chapter two with some surprising confessions. -Taylor! x_

_Disclaimer: **Dude, seriously, you'd know if I owned it, okay?**_

* * *

**Chapter Two**

Bethany kept up with Morgan nicely as they made their way out if the FBI building. She was looking all around her, studying things, taking them in. She never stopped until they got into the black SUV. She glanced at him a little nervously. "Will I actually have to use one?" she asked quietly.

He smiled slightly, turning the key in the ignition. "Have you ever used a gun before?"

She thought for a moment. "When I was nine, my uncle took me to a hunting range; let me shoot a rifle. But a hand gun? Never."

"It's a whole nother ball game."

Once at the indoor shooting range just up the road, Bethany felt her nerves beginning to tingle with anticipation and anxiety. It had been a while since she held a gun, even longer since she shot one. She hadn't liked the fact that she was killing something, but that the gun itself made her feel strong, not to mention protected.

"Hey, Bethany, come on," Morgan said, gently nudging her into the back room of the building with an elbow. She had huge, noise-blocking headphones over her ears, and safety glasses over her eyes. It was cement, the room, dull grey paint covering it all. There were four-foot wide lanes that couldn't have been longer than three feet forward. She swallowed, closing her eyes momentarily.

"Am I going to have to get my own?"

"It's a possibility, but probably not. We don't want you accidentally shooting anyone," he explained, sliding his gun from its holster. Quickly, he added, "No offense."

She snorted quietly. "None taken. I'd rather not accidentally shoot someone either."

He extended his arm to her, gun in hand. She took it, gingerly, avoiding contact with the trigger at all. But once her palm encircled the handle, he confidence had significantly increased, allowing her right index finger to rest on the small piece of black metal. It was a Glock 23, standard issue for FBI, and the CIA as far as she knew.

"I see you know how to hold it, at least."

"Please, there are people who don't?"

"You'd be surprised how unnatural holding anything can be for some people," Morgan mused, gesturing for her to stand between two of the slats. "Now, I want you to stand with your stronger foot forward, feet a shoulders width apart."

"I'm ambidextrous."

"You're kidding."

"No. As far back as I can remember it's been that way," she answered with a smile.

"Well, if you have a favorite side, stand with that foot forward." She stood so her right side was in front. "Okay, now I want you to raise the gun so it's level with your shoulder, and put your left hand over your right... There you go. When you're ready, pull the safety off, and go ahead and shoot. It helps if you shut one eye to aim a little better."

In this awkward position, Bethany felt powerful but yet a little guilty too. Taking a deep breath, she pulled off the safety, shut her left eye, and brought the trigger towards her. There was a bang so loud, she heard it clearly through the headphones. She felt a slight kickback, and knew enough to let it happen, but not too much. After a second, she looked to SSA Morgan, who was starring at the paper representing a person. "What? Did I do something wrong?"

She lowered the gun and flipped back on the safety

He paused, rubbing his upper lip with a thumb and forefinger. "Just the opposite, kid. Look down there? See where that little hole is? That's right where the heart would have been. You have some helluva shot."

"Maybe not as good as you think; I was aiming for the gut."

"Try aiming for the right shoulder. If you get it, we can start the test..."

* * *

JJ strode into the computer room and sat in the extra chair on the opposite side of Garcia. "What have you got?" she asked, nursing along her cup of coffee, handing Penelope her own.

She took the cup, gratefully, but didn't look away from her computer screen. After taking a sip, she spoke. "As of right now, I have Emily's identity started. It's harder than you would expect; I mean, having to find generic names that aren't quite generic enough to be obvious. And then there's making the driver's license, the social security number, the insurances... It just goes on and on."

The liaison sipped her own coffee, bringing her knees up to her chest and wrapping an arm around them. As she shifted to make herself more comfortable, she saw the many windows popping up and being clicked away on the monitor. "Hmm," she grunted. "Have you gotten anything for Bethany yet?"

"Nope. Not a thing, yet."

"Oh." It was quiet for a minute while Garcia focused on what she was doing. "How about 'Holly'?"

The techie stopped and looked over at her friend, eyebrows raised, but a curious smile tickling her lips. "'Holly'... Did you just come up with that?"

With a shrug, JJ swallowed her mouthful of hot liquid. "It was a name I considered for Henry, before we knew he was a boy."

She went back to her work, the smile still dancing across her lips. "I like it. Thanks, Jayje."

"Anytime," she replied, standing and exiting the room.

* * *

Hotch came into the room not three minutes after Rossi did. He looked flustered and bothered, neck tie beginning to be loosened. You could visibly see the stress on his face. Rossi himself looked peeved, but somewhat more relaxed than his boss. He sat in the chair closer to the door, putting his right ankle on his left knee and leaned back slightly. He folded his hands on his midriff.

"Why did you make this a democracy?" What was intended to be a question came out more as a statement.

"We need to catch this guy, and, deep down, I have to believe this could work."

"Hotch, that was a rhetorical question. I know this case is a priority, trust me, I do, but does it really have to involve an innocent fourteen-year-old? Would you let Jack do this?"

"Rossi," he said, flatly and sternly. "I understand and appreciate your concern, _but_ we have to be all on board for this one. If that means I have to watch over them myself, so be it, however we all have to contribute. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good."


	3. Chapter 3

_So, this one is a little longer than chapter two, which is, you know, kind of exciting. You get some background, and a little Henry gush. Again, I have no idea how things work in the FBI, so forgive my creative license here. I sort of like this one. Don't worry, action is coming, I promise, in, like, two chapters. Hold tight, it gets better. Thanks again to everyone who keeps reading this little diddy, I really appreciate it. Reviews are nice, but I love the little noise my iPod makes when I get an email, especially when it's telling me someone just added this to their favorites list, or their alerts list._

_On a more serious note, I leave for camp on the eighteenth, so I won't be updating for a week, probably. I shall make it up, though. Not to worry. I intend on finishing this, for once. :)_

_Disclaimer: **So, Criminal Minds is not mine... Transformers is not mine... Castle is not mine... Why don't you just rip my heart out?**_

* * *

**Chapter 3**

When Morgan and Bethany returned to the FBI building, Prentiss was sitting at her desk next to JJ, probably chatting about Henry. Morgan left her to go speak to Hotch, so she walked over to them, and hopped up to sit on an empty spot on the desk. As she swung her legs gently back and forth, the two women looked at her, smiles all ready plastered to their faces. She herself looked questioningly at them both, arms folding across her chest.

"Did you pass the gun test?" JJ asked after a second.

"With flying colors," Morgan called from across the room.

Emily Prentiss looked impressed. "Well done. I'd say you're an honorary FBI agent now. JJ said you're even getting a badge."

Bethany grinned, despite her efforts not to. "Seriously? Like with my picture and everything?"

The blonde nodded, swallowing a sip of her coffee. "The whole shebang."

"Awesome," she mumbled, tucking her silky, dark blonde hair behind her ear.

At that moment, Aaron Hotchner came striding out of his office, followed closely by Derek Morgan, who couldn't have been in there for more than a second. In a flash, they were both at Prentiss's desk, Hotch very serious, Morgan rather pleased. "Agent Prentiss, I suggest you spend as much time possible with our young agent Bethany here, seeing as you two need to know each other like the back of your hand for awhile. JJ, I'd like you to assist us. You're going to be Bethany's aunt for now, visiting because you just got laid off and are very close with your sister. You'll be checking in with them every few days. Are you clear on this?"

"Who's taking care of my son?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Garcia and Reid have both offered. Are you clear?" he repeated.

"Yes."

"Great. We should be up and running in a day or two, depending on how fast Garcia can finish your background stories." He walked away, leaving the four agents and teenager there, all wondering about what was about to happen. "I think..." Prentiss started. "I think he just gave us the rest of the day off."

JJ jumped up. "Anybody up for lunch? My treat."

"Let me go grab Reid and Rossi. See if they wanna go," Derek said, leaving the group.

"You in?" Emily asked.

"Me?"

"Yeah, you. Do you wanna go have lunch? You might as well, since you'll probably be staying with me for tonight," she said. Leaning closer, she added, "Plus, it's a free meal, and we can rack up JJ's credit card bill as much as we want."

Bethany chuckled; JJ's jaw dropped in mock astonishment. "I heard that, Emily Prentiss," she said, smacking her on the arm with a file folder.

Prentiss laughed as she stood and picked up her bag from under the desk. "Well, there's that and the fact we get to see little Henry, right?"

"Have I ever denied the child seeing his Auntie Emily?"

"Okay, okay. I'm in," the youngest said, sliding off the desk.

"What is everyone in the mood for?" Rossi's voice rang through the room as he, Reid, and Morgan came walking towards them. Although he addressed the room at large, he winked at Bethany.

"I could go for some Mexican," she said, raising an eyebrow back to him.

"Girl has great taste," Derek stated, clapping, then rubbing his hands together.

"Mexican it is," JJ concluded. "Let me just go get my stuff..."

When she returned from her office, Reid lead the team out to the elevators, where everyone piled in, Bethany shoved in a back corner next to Reid, who was starring at the metallic wall, a shadow of a grin shaping his lips. She leaned back against the side, closing her eyes. She hated elevators, and for a reason. She and a bunch of strangers had gotten stuck in one for three hours once. One woman had a full-on panic attack, and by the time the fire fighters got them out, the girl had been scarred for life. She knew it seemed silly to still hate them, but she couldn't help it.

"You okay, kid?" she heard Rossi ask, dragging her from her thoughts.

The doors were open, revealing the older man holding the doors open for her. She rushed out, cheeks turning a faint shade of pink. "Uh, yeah. Just... Not the biggest fan of elevators."

"Claustrophobia?" Morgan asked from a few yards ahead.

"Not really. Bad memories in them, is all."

The rest of the team let them catch up as they exited the front doors. "There's a place just around the corner. 'El Paraguas Amarillo'," Reid informed them, an absent stare shooting from his eyes to the parking lot, hands shoved in his pockets.

"Vamanos, niña," Prentiss joked, heels clicking across the pavement as she headed towards her car.

Bethany grabbed JJ by the arm, making her turn. "Is she... Is she always like this?"

She smiled. "Who, Emily? Not really, she's probably just excited to have someone staying with her tonight. She lives alone, and she may not complain, but we all know how lonely she is."

"You're serious?" Her eyebrows had shot up, and her eyes seemed to bulge out of her head.

Jennifer chuckled. "Only a little. But she does like having someone around. That's why we have movie night."

"Movie night?"

"Yeah, the whole team gets together, we rent a DVD, and watch it. Every week." She paused. "Look, why don't you go with her, we'll all give you our cell numbers at the restaurant, and we can talk later, okay?"

With a nod, the teenager ran to catch up to her new 'mom' in her car. The drive was short, but both insisted on having the radio on. There was a short debate over what station to listen to, but Bethany won, settling on Alternative Rock. It was her favorite genre of music, as she explained to the FBI agent. "Hayley Williams is like my idol," she said, leaning back in the seat of the Honda Accord. "Can't believe you've never heard of Paramore."

Prentiss smiled a little. "Morgan's the music buff, not me. I don't have a lot of time for it."

"Make time."

Emily looked over at her with an incredulous expression. "Excuse me?"

Bethany's eyes grew wide and she gapped. "I... I... I'm sorry! I shouldn't have said that. I was outta line."

Her eyebrows furrowed as she returned to driving. "It's okay, but... You must really like music, huh?"

There was a half-laugh from the passenger's side. "'t's pretty much my life," she answered. "When life is all screwed up, music is always there. When everything is changing, music never does."

There was a pause a her voice faded into silence. "That's deep."

"Uh, thanks," the quiet answer came as they pulled into the parking lot behind JJ.

Bethany practically did a barrel roll to get out of the car the second the car stopped. Not only had it been an awkward ride, but she was also extremely hungry, having skipped breakfast due to her nerves. Prentiss laughed as she followed her teammates inside the Mexican style restaurant. Reid and Rossi went in first, chattering about one thing or another, Morgan and Emily next, and then JJ with Bethany eagerly trailing close behind. They sat at a bright yellow and orange table, the wooden chairs painted brilliant shades of reds, blues, and oranges.

"Subtle," Rossi mused quietly.

"It would make Garcia proud," Morgan added, taking a seat at the end of the table.

As everyone took a seat, Bethany found herself sandwiched between JJ and Reid, directly across from Prentiss, and diagonal from Morgan and Rossi. She straightened up a little before glancing over the menu, trying to decide between tacos or enchiladas. The others discussed it for a minute before a Latino waitress appeared. "Hola, welcome to El Paraguas Amarillo. My name is Alcee, and I will me your camarera today," she greeted with perfect pronunciation. "Can I get you all something to drink?"

"I'll have a Sangria," Rossi announced, putting down the menu.

"Beer for me," said Morgan.

"Uh, a Pepsi, please," JJ said, absently starring at the salt shaker.

"Can I get a Dr Pepper," Prentiss decided, folding her hands and placing them on the table.

"Water, please," both Bethany and Reid answered simultaneously.

Alcee gave a short nod before heading off. The chatter that continued revolved around Reid's bland choice of beverage, until JJ pulled out her

Blackberry, that is. A chorus of 'here we go' later left the teen confused. She scrunched up her face with a strange look of puzzlement.

"Hey, I'm allowed to show off my baby boy if I want," the older blonde defended herself, not taking her eyes off the phone.

Emily leaned forward, shielding her mouth from JJ's view with her hand. "She sends us pictures of him whenever he does something."

"Oh, please. You know you love it."

She sat back and smiled. "I never said that.

Bethany smiled at the banter, but leaned over to see the pictures of Henry. "He's so adorable," she cooed.

When the meal came, it was quiet for a minute, everyone concentrated on food. But, eventually, Rossi broke it. "You're, what, fourteen, right?" he inquired after swallowing a mouthful of chili.

Bethany put her hand in front of her mouth as she chewed. "Yes, sir."

"None of this 'sir' crap, okay? You can call me Dave or Agent Rossi."

"Uh, okay s- I mean Dave."

"Are you okay with some tough questions?" asked Morgan, taking a swig of his beer.

Her nerves tingled a little, but she put on her best poker face, momentarily forgetting that they were profilers. "Sure."

JJ gave her a concerned look, placing a gentle hand on her bare right shoulder. "You don't have to answer them if you don't want to. We want you to be completely comfortable."

"No... No, it's fine. Go ahead."

David Rossi raised his eyebrows at her bravery. He had very rarely seen anyone that young agree to something like that. "All right. We'll start off easy; when is your birthday?"

Beth smiled. "Halloween of ninety-five."

"What's your favorite school subject?"

"Um... English I guess."

"Least favorite?"

With no hesitation, she replied, "math," almost instantaneously.

Reid looked a little hurt, but decided to jump in as well. "Do you have a favorite animal?"

"Dogs, probably." JJ flinched, but as far as she knew, the youngest was the only one who noticed.

"Favorite sport?"

She chuckled. "Track, soccer, basketball... Pretty much anything."

Morgan beamed at her. "Can I ask what happened to your parents?"

She paused, placing her half-eaten taco on the plate and wiping her fingers with a napkin. "They, uh... They died in a car accident when I was nine," she lied, quickly. "My aunt took me in, and you pretty much know the rest."

What she got in return were looks of sympathy. "It's okay," she added quickly. "I'm not going to have a break down or anything. I swear."

JJ shook her head a little, hair swishing slightly around her face. "Here, give me your cell phone," she said gently.

Doing a sort-of half-seat, Bethany pulled out her piece-of-crap Trackfone from her back right pocket, and handed it to the agent. She took a few bites while everyone else was quiet, Agent Jereau rapidly hitting buttons on it. When she was done, the phone was handed back. "I put our numbers on speed dial; Prentiss first, seeing as she's going to be like your mom, that's what she's under. Don't worry, the names are easy: Aunt Jenn is me, Uncle Dave is Rossi, Morgan is under Derek, Reid under Dr. Spencer, Garcia as Aunt Penelope, and Hotch is under Aaron."

Beth nodded before putting it back. She glanced at them nervously. "Do you think this is gunna work?" she asked, nervously.

"There's only one way to find out, right?" Prentiss replied with half a smile.

After the meal was over, the boys left to go home after saying their goodbyes. Emily and Bethany drove to JJ's house to see Henry, the younger girl hell-bent on keeping the music up as Paramore's "Misery Business" suddenly began playing. She had a ghost of a smile on her face as she listened, Emily almost mirroring it. Bethany seemed so much more relaxed with music on, telling the profiler that she really had had a tough life so far.

"So what do I call you exactly? Agent Prentiss?"

"You can start with that, if you'd like. Or, you could call me Emily. I'm fine with any name - within reason," she replied, turning into the Jereau-LaMontagne driveway. "For now at least. When we go undercover, you have to call me 'Mom', otherwise people start asking questions."

Once the engine cut out, the two unbuckled their seatbelts and exited the vehicle. "Well, yeah, of course. So what's the deal with this guy? Do we like him?"

"You're gonna fit right in at the BAU, you know," Emily mused with a chuckle, opening the front door an walking in.

JJ brought up the rear, having just arrived home as well. "Uh, thanks," Bethany replied.

"I like him," Jennifer said, passing them. "Let me just go see if Will's home with him."

As she left, Prentiss turned to her. "Personally, I do. He's good for Jayje, and he's good with Henry. But, he can be pretty hard to understand sometimes."

"Thank you, Agent Prentiss," came the heavily New Orleans accented reply from Will.

"Oh, sorry. Just... You know, not lying."

"It's no insult. I understand completely."

The blonde liaison appeared behind him with young Henry in her arms. He looked as though he was sound asleep. They followed her into the living room where Emily sat beside her best friend on the couch, Will sat on the arm, and

Bethany sat awkwardly in a soft, rocking armchair. She looked on, spacing out just a bit as she witnessed the almost-two-year-old to the other agent in the room. He stirred as he was passed, and soon enough, his eyes opened. After taking a minute to realize who was holding him, his whole face lit up like a Christmas tree. He reached up and grabbed at her hair, in the process sitting up as well.

"He sure knows who spoils him," JJ laughed.

"Talk to Garcia about that. I just play with him non-stop, is all."


	4. Chapter 4

_-sigh- Yet another filler. :( It has a purpose, though, so fear not! Be patient, as I have been. Or, tried, rather. Once again, thank you for your kind reviews, and subscribing to alerts. For your sanity, as well as mine, I'll try and post two more chapters tomorrow to get you through the week. I won't be able to write any more until I get back, but I have chapter seven done, as well as the ending (**note: chapter 8 is NOT, repeat NOT the ending chapter, I just thought of a brilliant way to end it and had to write it.**). Also, again, creative freedom is not a crime, as far as I know, so please just... ignore all the mistakes._

_Disclaimer: **Criminal Minds? Mine? BAHH! I wish.**_

* * *

**Chapter Four**

Before returning to her apartment, she had to stop and let Bethany grab her few belongings from the Social Worker's office. It consisted of a small duffle bag and a cardboard box. Then, after explaining the situation to the woman in charge, they reached the DC flat at almost five.

They had stayed at JJ's for over two hours, and it took another hour and a half to get it through that woman's head that an FBI agent would be fostering her for the time being. Bethany hadn't minded; she had sat flipping her phone open and closed for a while, then put ear buds in and listened to music. In all her life, Emily couldn't recall ever meeting a teenager like her. She was so quiet and undemanding, if she hadn't made the occasional noise, she might as well have been invisible.

Once at her home, it was hardly any different. She spoke once to say she was okay with sleeping on the couch, and then went to go take a shower. During the few spare minutes, the federal agent poked through the contents of the box; framed pictures, a medal from track, an old baseball, and a few other random objects.

"There's nothing very interesting in that thing," Bethany said from the doorway to the hall. "Well, nothing interesting to anyone but me."

Prentiss jumped a little at her voice, but crossed her arms and patted the couch beside her. "Try me."

"For starters," she walked over and sat beside her, "that baseball is from the first little league game that I was allowed to pitch in. I struck half the team out with that baby." She picked it up and threw it in the air, catching it as it fell. "That medal is from last summer. There was a track camp and my aunt signed me and Parker up. I won gold in sprinting and hurtles, but I gave my hurtles one to Parker, cuz' I felt sorta bad for her not getting any."

"That's nice."

"I guess so. Anyway," she picked up a picture of a younger her next to a woman with the same facial features but darker hair, both grinning like idiots. "That's my mom, before she... You know."

Emily wrapped a gentle arm around her shoulders. "You look just like her, you know."

"Yeah, everyone says that," was the reply, with a deep breath. She put it back then withdrew another picture of her, but this time with a different woman, a girl around her age, and a marble Belgian shepherd dog. "That's my aunt Bailey and my cousin, Parker, and that's their dog, Menace."

"That's a good picture; they look really happy. Hey, what ever happened to Menace?" Prentiss asked, wanting to know the answer.

"Uh, they put him in a shelter off Pennsylvania Ave. yesterday. I wish they hadn't; he's so sweet. But, knowing the DC shelters, I doubt he'll live to the end of the week. Pit Bulls go first, then Rotties, then big shepherds."

She gave a sympathetic smile. "Are you sure you're the same asshole who kept screaming at us the first time we met you?" she asked with a small laugh.

To her relief, Bethany laughed too. "Yeah, I'm sure. I guess I just needed an attitude adjustment."

There was a pause before the agent suddenly stood. "Get your shoes."

The younger stood too. "What? Why?"

"Just get your shoes and trust me, okay?"

Wordlessly, she obeyed, sliding on her worn basketball shoes and following Prentiss out the front door. After locking the door, they went out to her car. She starred out the window, confusedly as they drove through some rush hour traffic, not even bothering to fidget with the radio. "Hey, uh, Agent Prentiss?"

She glanced over quickly. "Yeah?"

"Thank you. For everything; for believing in me, for taking me in...

Thanks. It means a lot to me."

"It's no problem, Bethany. Trust me. But don't thank me until we catch this bastard, aright?"

She nodded, and went back to starring out the window until they were parked in a nearly-empty parking lot. She followed as they both got out, to the doors of the building with a blue roof. Once she was inside, she finally understood. "You don't have to-" she started, but was cut off.

"Yes, I do. Obviously he means a lot to you, so consider this a gift,"

Emily said, walking up to the desk. "Hi. Agent Emily Prentiss, FBI."

The woman looked startled and flustered. "Have we done something wrong, Agent?"

She smiled and shook her head. "I'm just here to find a dog we think you have. His name is Menace. He's a..." She looked over to Bethany, who finished the sentence.

"Belgian shepherd."

The woman, whose name tag read Nancy, gave a relieved sigh and nodded. "Yes, of course. This way," she said, then headed through a set if glass doors, past kennels of dogs, all the way to the very back room. She stopped outside a particular cage, where the massive dog was laying, leaning against the chain link fencing. Bethany's face light up and she knelt to pet him through it.

"Menace," she breathed. He stood an wagged his tail, vigorously.

"Was he yours?"

"No, my aunt's, but I lived with her for a few months. I had to give him up when I got put into the system," she explained, absently and almost inaudibly in the loud room.

"I'll take him," Prentiss said seriously.

"Okay, we just need you to sign a few things. Your daughter can hold onto him, if you like."

Bethany nodded and grabbed the blue leash hanging from a hook on the cage. The two women left the moment she had the loop around his neck. Menace eagerly followed the girl from there and to the front, where Emily was signing the papers. She rubbed his ears as they waited. When all was said and done, they were free to leave. Bethany let the dog into the backseat of the coupe, and then got in herself. He whined at them until a window was open, which he promptly stuck his head out of it. The car was started and they began to pull out of the parking lot when Emily spoke.

"Just understand that he's your responsibility. You get to feed him and bathe him and walk him, got it?"

"Got it."


	5. Chapter 5

_I'm leaving tomorrow. :( But I shall be back in a week, never fear. I had some computer confusion with this one, because I'm an airhead and saved it under the wrong name, then realized I saved the entire chapter under the wrong name. That sounds confusing, and trust me it is. So, I like this one because she's more assertive, and you get to hear more of her background. Enjoy! - Taylor. x_

_Disclaimer: **It's not mine. You need to get over it; I'm still struggling to.**_

* * *

**Chapter Five**

Emily awoke the next morning to her cell phone ringing from the nightstand beside her bed. She groaned, but rolled over, knowing it was probably JJ. But, when she looked at the caller ID, it was Hotch. "Yeah, Hotch?"

"I need you and Bethany to come in. Strauss wants to talk to the team."

She cringed. "Crap," she muttered, but louder she continued, "okay. We'll be there in twenty."

She hung up, sighed, then got up and walked out to the sofa Bethany was sleeping on. "Bethany, time to get up. We have to go," she said loudly. Menace looked up from his spot on the floor and stood to greet her. The girl stirred a little, but awoke a second later, damp hair clinging to her face from her shower the night before.

"Why d'we hafta go?" she asked, sleepily.

"My boss's boss wants to talk to us. It sounds pretty bad, so be prepared, okay?"

"Mmkay." She rose, slowly, the blanket falling away. She had on a pair of bunny shorts and a white tank top as pajamas, while Emily had a Yale tee shirt and a pair of sweats.

"I'm going to take a shower. We're leaving in twenty minutes."

"Wait," she said, standing and grabbing some clothes out if the duffle bag. "Let me change and pee first."

Prentiss nodded, and the girl was off like a shot to the bathroom. She sat on the couch, Menace choosing to sit in front of her and stare. She shook her head a little and smiled, reaching out a hand to scratch his neck. She heard the faint flush of a toilet, the running of the sink, and two minutes later, the girl was back in jean cutoff shorts that were shorter than finger-tip length and a dull yellow Hollister tee shirt.

"All yours," she stated.

While Emily was in the shower, Bethany went through the routine of feeding the dog, making a small pot of coffee, and feeding herself some Cheerios from a cupboard. By the time footsteps came into the small kitchen, she was washing her bowl and spoon. She glanced over her shoulder to see her in black slacks and a nice, white, v-neck blouse, hair perfectly dry and pin straight.

"I smell coffee," she said, walking over to the coffee maker. "You made it?"

"No, it was Menace, actually," was the totally serious reply.

"Ahh, so she does have a sense of humor!"

"Nah, I'm just a sarcastic person."

"You don't say. Why don't you grab whatever you need and we can go, kay?"

"You're not going to eat?"

"Poptarts are a wonderful thing, and Garcia usually brings a few extra muffins for the team," she explained, pouring some of the coffee into a silver mug, then putting a lid on it.

Bethany nodded, exiting to grab her mp3 player and cell phone. When both items were pocketed, her worn sneakers were slid onto her feet, over her short-cut white socks. "Can I have some?" she called, trotting back to the kitchen. Her response was being handed a black mug with 'FBI' written on the side in bright yellow. She said a thanks, then poured some joe into it, adding a little cream and plenty of sugar.

"You probably shouldn't drink this stuff so young," Emily told her, ushering her out the front door. "It stunts your growth."

After patting Menace on the head, she walked out of the apartment. "Trust me, I was probably done growing anyway. My mom was only five-five, and I hear my dad was only an inch taller."

"My mom isn't much taller than me. Half an inch, maybe," she said, fast-walking out to her car.

"You don't think his boss is gonna do something to stop this, do you?"

Emily paused only to open her car door and get in. Once Bethany was in as well, she replied, "I really don't know. But if she tries to, we'll fight like hell, don't worry."

She breathed a small sigh of relief. "I could always pull the orphan card, if you need. If it'll work."

She half laughed. "If you need to, I'll fake sneeze, all right?"

When the two finally got to the bullpen, Garcia was talking to Morgan at his desk, while Reid kept glancing at Hotch's office, where JJ, Hotch, another blonde woman seemed to be in a heated debate. Bethany sat in Prentiss's chair as she herself went over to interrupt the conversation. Morgan looked a little pissed, Garcia worried, only heightening when JJ caught sight of the new arrivals, sending Agent Strauss storming out to them.

She starred hard at Emily, who looked equally as tough back. Bad blood, the teen guessed. Morgan stood, Garcia backed off, Rossi appeared from his desk, and Reid stayed put, only feet away from them. "How could you all be so...stupid!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "Who the hell came up with this so-called plan? Huh? Who thought it was okay to send an innocent girl into the line of fire?"

All seven agents had opened their mouths to confess that it was them, but Beth beat them to the punch. "I did. I came up with this whole thing. All me."

Strauss wheeled around to face her, fire in her eyes. The younger felt herself shrink back a little, until regaining some confidence to stare back at her. "You did? A teenage girl with your whole life ahead of you? All by yourself?"

"That's right."

Prentiss's mouth widened, but all that came out was a sneeze. She threw an arm around her face, bumping her nose against the inside of her arm. Bethany took that as her queue. "Agent... Ma'am," she started, realizing she had no idea what her name was, also standing up, "My father died when I was two of a brain aneurism. My mom died a year ago because of a drunk driver. And now, my aunt and my cousin were both slaughtered because of a damn serial killer!" She felt anger rising, her voice also rising in volume. "If you expect me to sit around and do nothing to help, you can forget it. I really think you can catch this bastard if you'd just put someone under cover, and most of them agree with me."

"We all do," Reid said softly, not wanting to get in the middle.

"I know I'm risking everything here, but I don't have much anymore, now do I? There are families out there living in paralyzing fear because there's some psycho on the loose, and think the FBI is doing nothing about it. If we don't do this, he'll slip away. Again." She stopped and took a breath, barely glancing at the faces of each agent behind Strauss. "Ma'am, I understand you do not want to get me killed, and trust me I get that, but if you never take risks, you'll never get anywhere. Hell, you and everyone in this entire building come in everyday, not knowing whether they'll get back home alive. So, please, just give this a shot. I have a dog who will die for me. I have a team of agents who all said they would protect me, and probably a whole lot more willing to keep an eye too. I'm begging you. Just... Please." By the end of her rant, she felt hot tears begin to surface in her eyes, but refused to let them fall all the same.

By the look on her face, the boss looked like she had been slapped in the face. No one spoke for a minute, all trying to soak up the words that had almost been screamed. Strauss' face was frozen, but you could practically see the steam coming from her ears. "Young lady-"

"It's Bethany," she said hastily.

"-I do not appreciate being yelled at by a teenager, much less one willing to do something so... Irresponsible," she snapped, voice rising slightly with each word. "However, I do see a point behind all of this. If you are willing to undergo all of the training between today and tomorrow, I will oversee this operation. If at any point I feel this is going to go sour, I will not hesitate to pull the plug, understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," she replied, feeling relieved. "All I ask is one chance.

That's all I need."

Erin sighed and looked a bit defeated. "As for the rest of you, if one hair on her head is harmed, I swear to God-"

"It won't be their fault," Bethany said, trying to be helpful, but received one glare, one pointed stare, and six 'shut-up-before-you-get-us-fired' looks. "Sorry. But, if I get hurt, it'll be because of my choice to do this. This was my idea, remember? Not theirs."

"All the same, I don't want to see you filing paperwork if it's over her death, clear?" After the room at large nodded, she dramatically stormed back out of the bullpen.

The youngest braced herself for the yelling to begin. She shut her eyes and cringed a little. After a minute, though, she peeked out to see them all starring in the wake of their boss. "Sooo... No harm no foul?" she said, hopefully.

Hotch frowned, his face displaying as much frustration as it could. He opened his mouth several times to say something, but just couldn't find words. She had stood up to Erin Strauss. Erin-freaking-Strauss. No one had done that since Prentiss. He gave a strangled groaned, then turned on his heel and went back to his office, about ready to scream.

Morgan gapped at her for a while. "You do know who she is, right?"

"Well, not her name, but I know she has some kind of power here, am I right?"

"That's Hotch's boss. She could fire us all and sleep like a baby after."

It was her turn to gape. "So I just... And she could... She said..." She tried plenty of words, but never finished a sentence. "I need more coffee..."

She picked up her mug and hurried over to the coffee maker in the break room, while the agents took a moment to reflect on what had happened. Garcia's eyebrows had practically become a part of her hair, JJ looked like she was on the road to going into shock, Reid looked a little proud, Rossi seemed pleasantly surprised, and Prentiss had her mouth open, and was starring at where she had just been.

"Who is this kid?" she breathed, sinking into her desk chair. The rest of the team glanced over at her, and then to Bethany, who was sipping away at her coffee, a guilty look on her face.

"I think... I think she could take this guy down with her little finger," Garcia choked out her quip.

"No truer words have ever been spoken," Rossi muttered, feeling slightly better about this situation than before.

Hotch popped his head out of his office. "You should really be getting ready. We start tomorrow, bright and early."

Prentiss slowly walked over to the girl. "That was a real, sneeze, by the way."


	6. Chapter 6

_Guess who's back! I'm realllyyyyy sorry I haven't updated sinse I got back (Monday), but I've got a lot on my mind. Some personal things I need to solve, no need to worry, it's nothing serious. But I had the time of my life at camp, no joke. Can't wait to possibly work there next year. Anyway, I finished this on the ride there, and started the next chapter as well. It may take a few extra days to get the next few chapters out because school starts on Monday, so I'll be pretty busy with some things. Hopefully I'll pull through._

_Now, I was a little disappointed by my inbox this week, but I shal get over it. Please, just keep encouraging me, or you may not see the end. My poor attention span is taking a brutal beating over this little story. :) You don't have to review, but reading does wonders for my self-esteem. Oh, and the chapter after this gets the ball really rolling. Next chapter they go under cover! xD Thanks everyone! - Taylor. x_

_Disclaimer: **The agents are not mine, however Bethany, Menace, and the plot line are (yay!).**_

* * *

**Chapter Six**

Bethany hated mornings. There was barely any sun, meaning it was cold.

Everyone would be just waking up, so there was hardly anyone to hang out with. Then there was the fact that she always got pulled from her dreams every morning, and she liked her sleep. But, she did get coffee now that she was at Emily's. "You know, I like frappes a lot better," she told her absently. "They taste like chocolate."

Prentiss, who was walking into the kitchen, putting an earring in. "Huh," she said. "Maybe you'll get one later. As in, after you get everything done."

"Yes, _Mom_." Bethany rolled her eyes.

"Did you feed the dog?"

"Yes."

"Good. Get his leash, Hotch said he wanted him to come in today."

She finished eating the banana she had had in her hand, threw away the peel, and walked out. Menace was lying in the doorway, watching the scene unfold, but stood when he saw her come back with the plain black leash. He allowed his chain choke-collar and leather collar to be hooked on, but his tail thumped against the island and a stool beside it. "What am I going to have to do today?" she asked, moving a hand to get her dog to sit. He sat, but his tail still whacked the island.

"My guess? Probably take a self-defense class, get checked out by a doc, and find out what your new name is," she replied, picking up her bag and mug. "Come on."

At Quantico, Bethany finally got her FBI badge, complete with a serious photo of her in the corner. She clipped it to the sleeve of her blue tee shirt proudly as they waited in the elevator. Menace was unnaturally calm around all the new people. Prentiss and another agent also stood in the little box, not noticing, nor caring about the dog's behavior.

Garcia met them at the doors to the BAU, wearing a colorful polka-dotted sundress, her red hair twisted up in a funky style. She smiled brightly at them, petting the dog affectionately. "Well, mister Boss Man wants you guys brief with your aliases first, before my little agent here is carted off to the doctor. So, if you will please step into my office," she motored as they walked to her little computer cave. Once the two were seated, she was off once again, ignoring the dog who was sniffing around her purse. "Okay, so I'm sure you two have waited very excitedly for me to give you new identities? Yes? Great, so here they are."

Bethany raised her eyebrows as both she and Prentiss were handed folders with the official FBI seal on the cover. "You get to study those for the next twenty-four hours. Now, Emily, I'll start with yours because you were easily a hundred times more difficult to come up with than girl-wonder over here." The teenager smirked. "You're new name is Joan Kingston, age thirty-five, just moved to the neighborhood with your daughter, who I will get to later, after your husband died in a car crash involving too much tequila in another driver, and a tree. You work as an online accountant for high-paying customers, and have plenty of off time to spend with your lovely daughter Holly, and this is where my fun begins." She paused only to take a breath. "Holly Kingston, age fourteen, athletic in every sense of the word. Good grades, just going into high school in the fall, and love dogs. You don't like websites such as Facebook and Twitter after hearing of murders linked to such things, explaining your lack of an account. You love your mom, but sometimes you just need to get away, which is when you go running with your dog," she gestured to the now docile Menace, "everyday for two miles. The rest I left for you to use your own devices."

"Wow, Garcia. No social security number? No fake license? Are you sure you're feeling okay?" Emily asked, with a mockingly puzzled expression.

"Ah, my ducky. That is all in the file," Penelope replied, smiling proudly. "Now scat."

The two looked at each other and silently giggle for a second, before leaving, a disappointed Menace trailing behind. Halfway between there and the bullpen, JJ was walking, nose buried in papers. She didn't even look up when she nearly bumped right into her friend. Emily caught her, thankfully, before she had the chance. "Where's the fire?" she joked, pulling her out of her trance.

She offered a light chuckle. "No fire, just a little... preoccupied."

"Well, you might want to think about picking your nose up from the grindstone long enough to not walk into something."

Bethany, who had been right behind her, rocked on her heels so she could see who it was. Then, Prentiss moved and JJ's eyes immediately fell on her and Menace. She froze, face looking pale and grim. Both others noticed. "Jayje, you okay?" When there was no reply, Emily nodded to her. "Why don't you take Menace out of here? Bring him over to Reid or Morgan, hell, or Hotch."

She knew better than to disobey that with the liaison looking the way she did, but all the way over to Morgan's desk, she kept glancing over her shoulder to see if she looked any better. Once Menace was settled under the chair, head on her foot, JJ seemed to relax. Bethany looked to Derek, confused. "Is she afraid of dogs?"

His face fell. "I think so. Has to do with a guy named Tobias Hankle; we don't really talk about it. But, anyway, he set it up so we had to watch a woman be mauled to death by shepherds, and poor JJ got charged by them. I don't think she ever quite got over that," he explained in a low tone. "You didn't hear it from me."

"I... I didn't know, otherwise I woulda kept him away from her."

"Don't beat yourself up about it, she's fine. He didn't even touch her, which is good."

Hotch swooped into the room so fast, no one saw it coming. "Bethany, I need you to let me take your dog for a behavior assessment while you go for a full physical."

"His name is Menace," she said, handing over the leash. "Don't worry, he's a good boy."

"Well, we just need to make sure of that," he replied, then called over to the ladies. "JJ."

They made their way over there in a matter of seconds, the liaison careful to avoid Menace as much as possible. "JJ, I want you to take Bethany for that physical, Prentiss, you get to attend a behavior class."

"Sir?"

He gave a half smile. "Relax; it's for him, not you."

They split up, Bethany and JJ going to the floor above them and Emily going down to the bottom floor. In the elevator, she turned to her superior. "I didn't know. Sorry."

"Know what?"

"That you were afraida' dogs."

"I'm not... No, I'm not afraid of dogs. No way."

Under her breath, she muttered, "Whatever you say." Louder, she replied, "He's the nicest dog I've ever met. Honestly, he couldn't hurt you even if he wanted."

JJ sighed and looked down at her. "I don't doubt that, but-"

"Okay, I get it, geez. No need to bite my head off. I just thought you might get over it f you saw how good he is."

The elevator dinged, making Bethany let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. They stepped out and she was lead to a door with Dr. White written on a wooden plaque. JJ knocked, and within seconds, a man in his early fifties appeared, silver hair cut short and silver mustache slightly long and bushy. "You're Bethany?"

"Yes."

"Come in, please. JJ, if you'd like to stay, you can. Nothing embarrassing, I promise," he assured, gesturing to the room behind him.

Bethany shrugged and went past him, looking around at the various awards in Latin the guy had. He had gotten his degree from Yale, as far as she could see. She sat on the padded table and swung her legs back and forth. Dr. White shut the door behind them and the blonde sat in a chair by it.

"Now, let's start out easy, shall we? Do you currently take medication for anything?"

"No."

"Ever broken a bone?"

"My wrist when I was ten, snowboarding."

"Any preexisting medical condition?"

She glanced over at JJ, who offered a comforting smile, then back at him with nervous eyes. He shifted in his chair. "I assure you that anything you say in this room will be in confidentially," he said, raising his brows.

"I, uh, I was diagnosed with Leukemia when I was six. It went into remission when I was eleven."

"Bethany?" said JJ from her spot on the chair.

She gave her a "don't even" look, and then looked back to the doctor. "I've been in remission ever since. It's no big deal."

He was jotting things down with such vigor; she thought the paper might light on fire. "On the contrary, being a cancer survivor is a huge deal."

When they were done, the two walked in silence back to the BAU. JJ seemed determined to speak, but couldn't find the right words. Bethany was determined to not talk and just keep her eyes forward. When they reached her office, JJ reached out and grabbed her arm. "Bethany. Why didn't you tell us?"

She looked past her. "It's not important."

"It is, though. You had cancer for Pete's sake; don't you think we would have wanted to know?"

"It's not your problem. I'm fine, now."

JJ sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of her nose. "If you're worried that I'll tell Emily, you can relax. You need to tell her yourself."

She crossed her arms and bit down hard on her lower lip. "I'll tell her later. Just... Not now. She doesn't need to be bothered."

JJ threw her hands up in surrender before walking into her office and plopping down in her chair. Bethany looked around at the almost empty bullpen, then took off towards Penelope Garcia's techie office. The door was shut, what else was new, but she rushed in anyway. Garcia was sitting back in her chair, playing some silly little game on the computer closest to her. Her head whipped around as the door shut. "Is there something I can help you with?"

Beth glanced around the room first. It was covered with technology, well duh, she was a tech analyzer, and the FBI seal covered the monitors. "Uh..." she started, "how do you keep a secret around here? I mean, their business is getting inside your head."

She snorted. "You don't. It's next to impossible, not to mention pretty damn scary sometimes. Like, once, Morgan thought it would be funny to profile the entire team in the bullpen. He predicted everything they did, right down to JJ sneezing into her coffee."

She smiled, at that. "So basically you're saying we have no privacy?" She gave a sympathetic look. "Just hope you're not trying to hide the fact you're secretly a mass serial killer."

"Thanks, Garcia."

"Please, that's what cranky agents call me. I'm Penelope or Pennie, to you. Besides, it's what I do."

Bethany had one hand on the door knob, but turned. "Right. Thanks, Pennie."

* * *

Prentiss was pleasantly surprised with Menace. The name, she figured, was either an oxymoron, or he was a menace as a puppy. His behavioral tests showed he was loyal to the core, but was also sweet and loving. He was a good judge of character, as far as she could tell, because he was very wary of the instructor, who was good at his job but Emily sensed he was a sleaze. Menace tended to listen to Prentiss more, anyway.

On the way back up, she received strange looks from people in almost every department. Jordan stepped into the elevator on one and struck up conversation, making it easier to deal. They laughed about Viper and his ways before Emily had to leave. She saw Bethany hastily leave Garcia's office, but thought nothing of it, and passed to Hotch's. "Hey, Hotch," she said, poking her head in. "He passed."

He glanced up from his paperwork. "Good. I need a word with you."

She nodded, confused, but entered anyway, the shepherd lying down on her feet when she was sitting. He finished scribbling words onto a paper, then looked up. "I need to know how objective you can be on this case. It's easy to get attached, I understand that, but for right now, I need to be able to trust you to be as objective as possible."

"I understand that, but I don't make promises I can't keep. I will do my best for now, but this girl has no one, except for a dog. She needs some support right now. Hotch, put yourself in my position, just for a second. What would you do? She's only fourteen, and this is a lot to go through. I have my eyes on the prize here, but it's hard not to sympathize with her. I need to know if I'm allowed to have a heart in this case," she replied, coolly, hands folded in her lap. She stood after letting the words soak in, but was stopped by the door.

"Emily," Hotch said, "You're allowed a heart on all cases, just be careful on this one, okay?"

"Always."


	7. Chapter 7

_Bum-bum-BUMM! I'm back, baby! My mojo hath returned! :) I'm so excited for this one. Seriously, it gets the ball rolling pretty darn quickly. There are some possible unsubs, as well as little soft-Prentiss moments. -queue music- I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it. (not my song.) Ummm... I should update Friday or Saturday of next week, again, depending on school work and such. I have it started, so I have no idea when it's going to be up. This chapter is the longest, and it's great. :) Please feel free to critque, voice your opinion, and/or guess who is our unsub. Bets, anyone? OH! And sorry if the who name situation confuses you, because it confused me at first, too._

_Disclaimer: **I own my strange mind, not Criminal Minds.**_

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

The next morning was completely different. Both awoke from sleep at four-thirty; they were at the BAU by five thirty. They each had a bag packed, even though they were supposedly getting a whole new wardrobe. Menace seemed eager to be back, but considering both were so tired, he was calm. Bethany was like the walking dead, Emily was much more used to odd hours of sleep. JJ was the only other person there, looking about as tired as Bethany. She stood and gave them a small smile. "Morning."

"Morning."

Bethany made some sort of moaning sound, using the wall to help her stay up straight. Both agents snickered a little. Their little laughing fest was interrupted by Hotch and Rossi swooping in, wearing matching, serious expressions. They passed, but all three followed, the youngest barely functional. She sat on the steps of the bullpen, arms over her knees, and head buried in her arms. "You guys know what to do, and I trust you to get it done without a hitch. You two will be arriving at your new home in a few hours; there you'll find everything you need. There are agents set up around the area to monitor your movements. Any questions?"

No one spoke, so he ushered them off to the car, where Menace was sleeping in the back seat. Bethany mirrored him in the front, curled up in a ball and completely unresponsive. Prentiss was secretly happy her job required odd hours of sleep; otherwise she wouldn't have been able to drive almost three hours to the small town on Oakville, Virginia. Although, she wouldn't have refused a few more hours of sleep.

Around three quarters of the way there, the younger stirred and awoke, stretching her limbs as best she could in the small coupe. She yawned at least three times before settling in a sitting position, elbow resting on the 'gonna-piss-myself-handle'.

"How'd you sleep?"

"Like someone woke me up at four-thirty in the morning."

She snorted, dryly. She twisted the wheel at a turn, making her look out Bethany's window. "Are you ready?"

She inwardly sighed. "As I'll ever be, I guess."

"You know you don't have to do this; all you have to do is say the word and I'll turn this car around and go home."

The corners of her mouth defied gravity for a few seconds. "What's the word?"

Emily thought for a second with a serious expression on her face. "I don't know... Daisies."

"Lilies, then."

The rest of the ride was fairly uneventful, aside from stopping at a little bakery for muffins. It was quiet, even when Menace decided to wake up and whine to go pee. When the car finally pulled into the driveway of the small, stereotypical suburban house, Bethany felt like if she didn't get out and walk around, her legs would fall off. As soon as it was at a standstill, she yet again almost did a barrel roll from the vehicle. Car rides bothered her; it seemed, all of a sudden. "Come on, Menny," she urged when the front seat was pulled far enough forward for him to leap out.

The two enthusiastically bounded to the front door. "Mom! Keys?"

Prentiss, who was just climbing out, dug into her jeans pocket and threw a pair of keys to her. "Thanks" was called over her shoulder as she struggled to unlock the door. It eventually swung open to reveal movers buzzing about with furniture, fully explaining the big movers truck parked on the curb. "Woah..."

The dog beside her barked and ran ahead to check out the house. A few of the men jumped aside, and then nodded slightly to Bethany. She smiled in return, but took in her surroundings. She was standing in a comfortable-sized foyer with stairs one pace right, and three paces in front of her, a hallway to the side of that, and door-less doorways on either side. She decided to go through the hall, to find the den on the other side. There was a television on a stand against the back wall with a large leather couch facing it, and smaller recliners flanking either side. Bethany's mouth hung slightly open in astonishment as she continued on to the room to the right of that. The kitchen.

It was nothing extravagant; a window above the sink, counter space, a refrigerator, a microwave, cupboards, and a small table with a few chairs set around it. Sunlight streamed into it, bouncing off countless white surfaces, right into her eyes. She blinked, and tried to block it with her arms, but it simply came from everywhere. In defeat, the young girl retreated back to the foyer, where Emily was standing with the bags slung over her shoulders. "Sorry," she said quickly. "I'll take mine."

The small duffle was given over along with a raised eyebrow. "Go unpack, kiddo. Your stuff should be upstairs all ready. Last one on the left."

Without replying, she bolted up the half-carpeted staircase. There was a door to her right, then three more to the left. As per instruction, she walked in the direction of the wide open door at the very end of the short hallway. The furniture had been set up in there as well, a bed, a desk, and a dresser. A dark purple beanbag chair was thrown haphazardly in the center of the otherwise white and wood room - a splash of paint on a blank canvas. It made her smile; until she spotted seven cardboard boxes piled in front of the window all marked 'Holly' in bright red Sharpie marker. She dropped the bag and practically ran to them, opening one to reveal clothes neatly folded and jammed in. Four others held the same; however the two remaining larger ones held items one would normally associate with teenage girls, plus a skateboard.

"Garcia... I owe you one," she muttered as she rifled through many of the things she loved; a basketball, running shoes, a new pair of basketball shoes, spiked belts that undoubtedly came from either Rue 21 or Hot Topic, books, posters of her favorite bands, and so much more. She heard the jingling of tags as Menace trotted into the room, tail wagging excitedly. He pushed his soggy nose into a box, sniffed, then proceeded to sneeze all over a pair of black skinny jeans. "Menace, seriously?"

* * *

After she had emptied the contents o the boxes to proper places, the initial thrill of a new environment had worn off. She saw the adjoining bathroom, and guestroom, and the boring backyard, and not to mention the cookie cutter neighborhood outside. Bethany knew she had a lot to get used to fairly quickly, but it seemed like an overbearing task. But, after all she was determined to accomplish this, so she grabbed her new Baker skateboard, and Menace, and was out the door with a brief yell to Prentiss.

The dynamic duo raced down the sidewalk, the dog pulling her as she stood atop her board. There were all ready people galore out, despite it being only eight-thirty on a Thursday morning. They were, for the most part at least, nice, almost all stopping their routine to say hello and welcome her to the neighborhood. She had nearly slipped up and said her real name the first three times she introduced herself, but after that, Holly had a nice ring to it.

Menace was greeted as well, albeit not as enthusiastically, especially because of the way he would step in front of her. She had to at least give him credit for the fact that he hadn't scared anyone off. Yet.

As they rounded the corner to the third block of straight suburbs, Bethany was nearly thrown as her companion suddenly stopped. She managed to step off in time to save herself from face planting, but not in time to stop herself from slamming into someone. She staggered back a step and looked to see a handsome boy around her age with dark brown skin, a red shirt, and jean shorts on. "I'm so sorry," she said quickly. "Are you okay?"

He chuckled. "I'm fine, but I think the real question here is are you?"

"Yeah... Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, Menace doesn't usually stop like that," she said, shooting the dog a pointed glare

He leaned over and scratched him behind the ears. The dog seemed to relax at the gesture. "Menace, huh? Doesn't seem like one to me," he mused, then looked up to her and held out a hand. "You don't look familiar. I'm Julius Parker. I live over on Hanover. You?"

She took the extended hand and gently shook it. "Holly. Kingston. I just moved on Clark, I think. My mom said we needed a change of scenery, or something."

Julius flashed his bright-white smile. "It gets old real fast."

Bethany looked around, casually, taking in all the similar-looking homes. "I wonder why," came her sarcastic reply. "Hey, uh, I don't mean to be nosy, but what are you doing out here so early?"

"My parents sent me to pick up a pie from Mrs. Rosewood. She makes the best pies in town... Just don't try the rhubarb."

She laughed softly, but stopped when she saw the serious look on his face. He had a good few inches on her, but she could still see all his features as if they were eye to eye. "I'll remember that, thanks. Look, I should probably g-" she started, going to retrieve her board. He caught her lightly by the arm.

"Why don't you come with me? I mean, unless you have somewhere you have to be."

Bethany's mind raced back to what the agents had said about this... unsub, had they called it? 'Probably uses handsome fifteen year old boys'. Her lips scrunched to the side. "Uh... Sure. Lemme just text my mom." She pulled her phone from her back pocket, and her fingers flew as she typed 'kid wnts me 2 go w/ him 4 pie. txt u address l8r'. "'Kay."

She picked up her skateboard and tugged slightly on the leash. Together they walked directly across the street and down the sidewalk in silence. Julius had his hands in his pockets and his eyes fixed ahead, Bethany had her hands full and eyes following the ground a few feet in front of her. "So, Holly, where're you from?"

Thinking on her feet, she quickly replied, "This little town called

Pomfret, in Maryland. It's just a little ways away from DC."

"What made you move?"

She glanced up, a far of look in her eyes. "My dad died. He got run off the road by a drunk driver. Hit a tree and died instantaneously."

"I'm so sorry. Were you close?"

"Not exactly. We got along well, for the most part, but he didn't take me places very often. I barely knew what his job was," she answered, easily. Her phone buzzed, causing her to jump. She extended the leash to him. "It's probably my mom. Can you hold him for a minute? Please?"

When he took it, she read her text. 'send it NOW.' She sighed, turning to her companion. "Do you know the address? She just wants to know how far I'll be."

He nodded. "Yeah, it's 23 Apple Drive. Ironic because her best pie is apple."

She smiled as she typed her quick response. "'Kay, I can take him back." She tucked her phone into her butt pocket again and took the leash back. They continued in silence for a few minutes before Julius gestured to a brick house on the left. They headed up the walkway and onto the porch, where he knocked on the glass front door, very casually.

An elderly-looking, dark-skinned woman opened the door, a wide smile on her face. "Well, good morning there, Julius. Who've you brought this morning?"

"Mrs. Rosewood, this is Holly Kingston. She just moved here from Maryland," he answered.

Bethany smiled back at her. "It's a pleasure to meet you. He tells me your baking skills are impeccable." She resisted the urge to use slang as much as possible, but even saying that sentence was difficult.

"Now, I don't know 'bout that, but I do enjoy doing it. Why don't you come in? You're dog is no problem, right?"

"He couldn't hurt a fly if he wanted to," she assured. Mrs. Rosewood opened the door wider for them to step in. It was cozy, floors covered in white carpet, and the air smelling of a mix of apple pie and lavender. Menace sneezed, tail starting to wag at the smell of food.

Julius nudged her to the left, which was apparently the living room, judging by the medium sized television, coffee table, and couches on either side. They took a seat on the one with its back to the windows, the dog taking his spot beside Bethany's legs. The woman had shut the door, and then disappeared, probably to the kitchen. She reemerged a few minutes later, carrying two tin pie plates with plastic wrap over the top. She handed on to Julius and the other to Holly. Before she could open her mouth to object, Mrs. Rosewood held up a hand.

"Why don't you consider this a 'welcome to the neighborhood' gift? No charge," she instructed softly.

Julius pulled a few bills from his pocket and handed them to the elder. "Thank you," he said, again flashing his dazzling smile.

"It's no trouble, sugar."

As they strode back down the sidewalk, Julius carrying both pies, a beat up, white pick-up truck slowed beside them, a man in his early forties in the driver's seat, and a handsome blonde boy beside him. "Morning, kids," he said, brightly. "You need a ride?"

Bethany sent a nervous glance in her new friend's direction. He shook his head. "No thanks, Mr. Bey."

"You sure? It's a far walk home, Julius. It's no problem at all. Justin and I were just on our way to the store, it's right on the way."

Just like any of the agents would have done, she studied the body language of the two in the truck. The man had a smile on his face, but his eyes said something different. They weren't hopeful, nor harsh, but sad. This made her wonder. Justin's eyes hadn't left the dash since they pulled up. He was fidgeting with his hands, looking uncomfortable and awkward. He, too, seemed a little sad, but she wasn't sure if it was even for the same reason.

"No, that's okay. Walking's healthy."

"Okay then. You both have a nice day."

Bethany offered a small smile as she replied, "you, too."

When they had gone, she looked over at Julius. "There something I need to know about him?"

He stopped walking and turned to face her, hand taking a gentle grasp on her shoulder. "Holly, I've known you for a little over an hour," he started. She nodded, slowly. "And You seem pretty frickin observant, so I'm not gonna lie to you. This whole neighborhood is pretty wealthy, just in general. People here have good jobs- doctors, lawyers, executives, and whatever. That guy, his name is Walter Bey, his wife died about two years ago, and she had the good job- she was a high paid nurse somewhere. Well, when she died, he couldn't keep up with the bills as easily, so he took a job as a plumber, and made Justin get a job at the store down the road to get by. He's friendly, but there's something off about him. I don't know what, but there's something he's hiding. Something big."

"And Justin?"

"Poor kid never has any free time. When school starts, I barely see the kid anywhere other than the library and the store. Girls throw themselves at him, but he barely talks to them. Actually, he barely talks at all. Honestly, I feel bad for him."

Bethany bit her lip, knowing Prentiss would want to hear all about them. "That's all?"

He nodded, solemnly. "He needs friends badly, but he's so quiet, I can barely hold a conversation with him."

"How old is he?"

"Fifteen, I think. He's a grade higher than me, is all I know."

She nodded as well, staring past him at a tree. When she looked at him, she noticed the look of confusion on his face. "What?"

"Why do you want to know all this?" he asked, eyes narrowing.

She felt Menace sit on her foot as she shrugged. "I wanna know who to watch out for. Don't wanna get caught up in the wrong crowd, you know?" He didn't answer. "I should probably get home and help unpack. So... Thanks. For the walk and the talk."

He handed her her pie, and as she was about to kick off on her skateboard, he said, "wait!"

Bethany turned around, eyebrows furrowed. "What's up?"

He smiled, almost nervously. "Can I have your number?"

She laughed, just once, but put down the food, and pulled out her phone. He took his out as well, and they traded, each punching their information into each cell. Once they were back with their owners, she and Menace were off like a shot, taking a few turns until they saw 'home'.

Bethany left the board in the bare front yard and they ran to the front door. Emily was in the kitchen, unpacking plates and bowls into the cabinets. She looked up as Beth let the dog off the leash. She had her face set on an expression of wonder. "Got something you wanna share with the class there, Hun?" she asked, putting down the stack of dishes she had in her hands.

The younger sat on a stool at the counter. "Uh, yeah. We might want to call Aunt Pennie for a background check."

Prentiss leaned towards her. "On?"

"Guy named Walter Bey. He's a plumber. Julius said there was something off about him, but isn't sure what."

"Woah, woah. Bey? Julius? Slow down there, kid. Who's Julius?"

Bethany almost rolled her eyes. "He's this nice kid I met, and is sorta the reason we got free pie. Seems totally normal. Both parents. No funny stuff."

Her eyes narrowed, in a protective, mother-bear sort of way. "You don't know that yet." She whipped out her cell phone and hit a button.

"Bakery of all known knowledge; would you like your muffin buttered?"

Bethany snorted, then slapped a hand over her mouth.

"Garcia, I need you to run a name for me."

"I'm gonna need a name, cupcake."

"Walter Bey. That's B-e-y."

"Okay..." she said, slowly. In the background, there was the sound of keys being pressed a mile a minute. "So, our fine fix-it man is clean, on the outside. He seems like a normal, single dad to the untrained eye. Once I started digging, I found some interesting dirt."

"Well, come on, tell us."

"Okay, pushy. He was arrested when he was fifteen for animal cruelty- aw, he killed a whole litter of puppies, and the mother."

"How?"

"Looks like he... Broke the mom's neck, then stuffed the puppies in a bag and lit them on fire. But, he got it erased from his records when he turned eighteen. His former wife Amber checked in to a clinic several times with signs of abuse. Nothing was ever filed against him, though."

"Did he have a daughter?" Bethany asked, leaning her elbows on the counter.

"Yes, Emma. She died in a car accident with her mother when she was fourteen."

"Okay, thanks, Garcia-"

"Hold on," she said, quickly. "His son-"

"Justin."

"Yeah, he ran away three times. He was brought home by the police twice, and once by a neighbor."

"Is that it?"

"Yep. Baker out." Both sides of the line clicked off.

Prentiss looked her in the eyes. "You need to be careful. Try to get close to the son, but stay away from his father, got it?"

"Yes, ma'am." She slid off the stool, and went to go upstairs.

"And Holly?"

She turned her head back. "Yeah?"

"If you ever need to talk, I'm right here."


	8. Chapter 8

_Oh hai there. Rememer me? The one who promised you this chapter? Yeah? Kay, good, you're all set. Also, can you say filler? I can. This one is a little slow, but honestly the next one should grab your attention fairly quickly. I'd love to hear your guesses as to who's our unsub and their accomplice; I seriously would. It's exciting, all the emails I get from reviews and alerts and favoriting. :) I love all of you who have done any and/or all. You have no idea how fuzzy it makes me feel inside. Like shag carpet, almost. Anyway, thanks to everyone reading this, because it really means a lot. I'll try and get the next chapter up next weekend (Friday, Saturday or Sunday) but I can't garuntee anything because of school. Thanks again! -Taylor. x_

_Disclaimer: **I don't own Prentiss, or Criminal Minds, but all the teenagers in this? Yeah, they're kinda my idea... Sooo, if you could just not sue, that'd be great. kthanks**_

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

"Holly! Hey, Holly!" a voice called from behind her.

Bethany was out running, two days since the Bey meeting. Menace wad trotting beside, and she could barely hear anything over the music being fed into her ears by ear buds. But, the person was so loud she could her them over

Skillet's "Rebirthing". She stopped and turned around, attempting to control her erratic breathing. It was Julius running to her like a bat out of hell. She shook her head, her ponytail swishing behind her head, pulling an ear bud from her ear.

"You seriously need to turn those down; I've been chasing you for at least half a mile."

"Sorry. I was in the zone." He stopped short in front of her. "What up?"

"There's someone I want you to meet," he replied, grinning ear to ear.

She took a step back, giving him a wary look. "Right now? While I'm all sweaty?"

All he could do was nod. She shrugged. "A'right. Well, go on."

He took her left wrist, pulling her back the way she had come. He seemed so excited, he had no idea he was practically dragging them along. She bounced a little in her shoes, while Menace had to almost run to keep up. "Slow down, Jule," she said, laughing. "I'm sure whoever it is will still be there."

Ignoring her, he said, "You're gonna love 'em. They're the best!"

"Who?"

"You'll see."

After a few minutes of this, they were outside of a large, two-story, white house with oak front doors and a double-car garage. He brought them up the front steps, and straight through the door. "Aedon? Kalli?" he shouted.

Bethany yanked her hand back, rubbing around her wrist, mockingly. "Ow."

He looked back at her, the grin never wavering. "Oh, sorry, but you've really gotta meet them."

"Why?"

Before he could answer, a teenage girl with brown and blonde hair came tearing down the stairs. She had an expression matching that of Julius'. She sprinted towards him and practically jumped in his arms. There were excited exclamations, as well as squeals before they let go of each other. The girl,

Bethany figured was Kalli, took a step back, just noticing her. "Who's this?"

"Oh, right. Kalli, this is Holly. Holly, this is my girlfriend Kalli."

Bethany extended a hand. "Nice to meet you."

She shook it. "You, too. You just move here?"

"Yeah, the other day."

A boy with dark brown hair almost covering his eyes came from a room at the back of the house. He smiled when he saw Julius, taking a hand and giving him the infamous one-armed man hug. He glanced over at her, flicking the bangs from his face. "Well, hello there," he said, taking a step towards her. "I'm Aedon. You're cute."

She was struck by his bluntness, blushing a little. "Uh, thanks," she offered a nervous laugh. "I'm Holly. I just moved in up the street the other day."

"Then we'll be seeing a lot of each other, then, now won't we?"

"I guess so."

Menace stepped in front of her, staring up at the boy, unfazed. He didn't look very pleased, either. Aedon looked down at him, a frown creasing his otherwise bright face. "He your dog?"

"Yeah. That's Menace. We were out running, and..."

"Julius kidnapped you. Gotcha. Hey, you wanna go finish that run with me?" he asked, his smile beginning to creep back as he looked away from the brindle shepherd.

Bethany froze. She had never been hit on like that before. Hell, she barely got hit on at all before. Especially in a tight, sweaty tee-shirt and running shorts, hair sticking up in places. "Um, sure. How far can you run?"

He chuckled, "About a mile. After that I get lazy."

"Well, we'll have to change that, won't we?"

* * *

Emily hummed to herself quietly as she finished the last of the unpacking of her bedroom. The wardrobe full, but the closet was half empty. Even at her apartment in DC she didn't remember having that much stuff. She never had so many pairs of jeans before, either, especially not the more expensive brands like Hollister or Forever 21. This was certainly a learning experience for the both of them. And yet, she realized she still knew next to nothing about the girl she was living with. Secrets seemed to be her thing, but profiling was Prentiss'.

Determined to know more, she shot Bethany a BS text message about needing her to go to the store and get milk. They may have had none, but they really didn't need any yet. Without guilt, she walked into her bedroom, taking in the posters all ready hung, the bright orange and black sheets on the bed, and the small pile of dirty clothes near the door. It's said that how one's personal living space is decorated to display one's personality, but her's was all over the place. There were contradictions all over the place; a tiny make up bag next to the skateboard and basketball shoes, an Eminem CD underneath a Paramore poster. It was a ploy; however, she could see it. There was no specific thing that she could point out as a giveaway, but she somehow knew.

"B-Holly... What are you trying to hide from me?" she muttered to the room at large. Her legs brought her to the desk, opening the drawer above the computer chair. There were a few pencils and pens, as well as a few papers. None caught her eye, so she moved on to the drawers off to the left. The top one was smaller and contained much less than the larger bottom two. Neither it, nor the one below it held anything of interest; mostly books or CDs. The final one held the entire contents of the box Bethany had had before. She smiled at the two photos, slightly, and then pushed past them to find an envelope of pictures that she shifted through. They seemed to be mostly of smiling girls and women in their early twenties, for the most part. There were only a few with Bethany actually in them, but her hair was cut shorter, about halfway down her neck.

After a few more minutes of searching the room, Emily came up empty handed, and so, in defeat, she left to go downstairs and watch a little television to satisfy the boredom that was bound to set in soon. Her feet rested on the coffee table as she stretched herself out upon the couch, mindlessly channel-surfing. Something was nagging at her, distracting her from caring about what to watch. But, what bothered her most was that she had no idea what it was.

* * *

Bethany slowed to a walk, Menace and Aedon mirroring. She pulled her phone out, read the text, and rolled her eyes. Aedon gave her a confused look, an opened his mouth to ask what was up, but she answered before he had the chance. "My mom needs me to get milk. Do you mind coming with?"

"No. You need money?" he asked, reaching for the pocket of his shorts.

She shook her head. "No, that's all right; I always carry a couple of buck with me running." Again, he opened his mouth to ask, but she beat him there once again. "I used to get Gatorade when I went out, now it's just a habit. Hey, uh, how far is it to the store from here?"

"Just up and around that corner, down there," he said, pointing to the left. "Not that far, but it's a long walk back."

"Great," was her sarcastic remark.

As he said, they arrived at the small grocery store in just a few minutes. She left Menace to sit with Aedon while she went in to grab the goods. As she did so, she caught a glimpse of Justin behind a shelf of chips and other miscellaneous snack foods. With the half-gallon of 1% in hand, she approached him with a shy smile. He looked up from organizing bags of Goldfish, a blank look on his handsome face. "Hi," she said, awkwardly. "I'm Holly. You're Justin, right?"

He nodded, face shifting into a look of puzzlement.

"I, uh, I'm new and Julius told me you were pretty chill, so I just... I thought I'd introduce myself." She could barely look at him directly for too long. "So, now that I feel completely awkward and stupid, I think I'll go..." She started to walk away, but his voice stopped her.

"It's nice to meet you," he said, his voice a bit scratchy, but deep.

She turned to look at him, a smile spreading across her face. "You, too. We'll have to hang out sometime, eh?"

He simply nodded and returned to work, while she checked out and went back out to where she had left Aedon and her dog. Menace was starring at the boy intensely, while he was completely oblivious, watching the windows with a distant look to his eyes. The corner of his lips curled up at the sight of her. "Shall we head home?" he asked, offering an arm. She first picked up the leash, then hesitantly took it in her own.

They walked in silence for a while, Bethany's mind wandering to what JJ had told her before they left. Before she knew it, Aedon had stopped, and she realized they had made it back to her house. "This is me," she stated, dumbly.

He nodded, turning to face her. "Yep. Look, Holly, this may be a bit forward, but I was wondering if you'd like to go out with me tomorrow night? Nothing fancy, just out for burgers or something at Dann's."

She took a second to absorb what he was asking before she stuttered out, "s-sure."

"Good," he said, grinning like an idiot. He leant down a bit, then kissed her forehead softly. She felt her cheeks warm up, and Menace sit on her feet, making him take a step back. "I'll see you tomorrow, then."

He jogged away, leaving Bethany dumbfounded. "Okay."

Once she collected herself enough, she found her way into the house and fell back against the front door. Prentiss peered in. "You okay?"

"Yeah... Yeah, I... I'm better than okay."


	9. Chapter 9

_As promised, here is chapter 9. The first half is fluffy-stuff, for the most part. Not a big fan of that part, but it must be done. Hey, you know what I just found out? In real life, from Quantico to DC is actually 50 minutes apart. Interesting... I feel stupid. :) and when I started writing this, I never saw the episode where you got to see inside Prentiss's apartment for the first time ('Sex, Birth, Death'?), so that's off. I just want you to know I am taking creative license still, haha. Next chapter up next weekend, unless I finish two pretty quickly, which just may happen. Hope you enjoy! -Taylor! x_

_Just on a random side note, Betas = GOOD. I need one because I just re-read this chapter to proof-read **after**__ I posted and realized the many grammatical mistakes. Oops. Anyone know a good Beta for me? lol_

_Disclaimer: **So, Criminal Minds is not mine, Snapple is not mine, Axe isn't mind, America's Most Wanted isn't mine, E!'s 'True Hollywood Story' is clearly not mine, so in this whole story, I basically own nothing... You'll see what I mean by the end.**_

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

"Nuh-uh. No way," Emily stated, with arms crossed. "No."

Bethany gaped at her. "Bu- I-"

"I said no."

"Come on! I'll only be down the road, and you can even text every once in a while. Hell, have Garcia track my cell phone if you want," she argued.

Prentiss cocked an eyebrow, shifted her weight to her left hip, and shook her head. "I haven't even met the kid."

"I'm sure he wants to meet you. Please, Prent- I mean Mom."

She sighed, heavily. "I don't want you out past nine, and if I don't like him, you're not going; understood?"

"Yeah, totally," she replied. "Thank you."

"If anything at all sounds off about him, you call me right away. No funny business."

"None."

"Have him here by six."

"Yes, ma'am."

* * *

Bethany sprung up from her position on the couch beside Emily and practically ran to the door. The clock on the wall above the television read 5:50. She pulled the door open to see Aedon standing on the step, grinning like a Cheshire cat. He seemed to light up at the sight of her. From the hand behind his back, he provided a single daisy. "I, er- you seemed like a daisy kind of girl," he said, holding it out to her.

Her cheeks turned pink as she took it, stepping back to allow him entrance. "Thank you. My mom wants to meet you," she said, sounding a little apologetic. "Come on."

He fell in step beside her and they entered the living area together, where Emily was still sitting, TV now shut off and her posture suddenly better. She looked from face to face before standing. She extended a hand. "You must be Aedon," she said. "I'm Ms. Kingston. Take a seat."

Bethany hid a flinch. She was using her interrogation tone. Shit was about to go down. All Aedon could do was shake her hand and sink into the loveseat next to the lamp. "It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am. You're daughter is lovely."

Under her breath, the teen muttered, "nice save."

Prentiss cleared her throat, shooting her a discrete, yet sharply pointed glare. "I believe now is a good time to just go over a few rules," she began.

Beth rolled her eyes. "Mom! Is that seriously necessary?"

Ignoring her, she continued, "Now, it goes without saying that I don't want any funny business."

He swallowed. "Understood."

"And, I want her home by nine, at the latest. You will be respectful of her at all times, meaning no vulgarity, or violence-"

"Excuse me, ma'am, but I asked Holly out. I would never even think of doing anything like that. I promise."

She gave him a stern, 'you-better-not' look before a soft smile. "Good, then we're on the same page here."

He stood, looking relieved. "Thank you."

"For what? Now go. Have fun."

Bethany gave her a loose hug, and then turned to leave with him. "Bye, Mom."

Outside, a navy blue Honda was parked at the curb, a middle-aged man sitting in the driver's seat. She nearly froze before realizing it was only his father. He opened the car door for her, then closed it and ran to the other side. Before they pulled away, she saw Prentiss in the window, cell phone pressed to her ear, eyes glued to the car. She figured it was either Garcia to check the plate number, or JJ to vent her worries to. Either way it was about him.

Dann's wasn't particularly packed, but there weren't many available tables. They squeezed in at the back corner booth, across from each other. She had tucked the white flower into her hair, just above her ear. He hadn't said a word since they entered, and just continued to look at her. "We haven't even eaten yet, so I couldn't have something on my face; what's on your mind?" she asked, putting down the menu she had been glancing over.

He smiled, and looked away for a split second. He shifted in his seat a little. "Nothing... You're just... Really pretty. But, you don't look like your mom much. You look like your pops?"

"People used to tell me that. Hope I don't now, though."

Aedon's forehead creased. "Oh? Why is that?"

"He's six feet under, rotting."

That was a mood killer. He frowned a little. "I'm so sorry. So, your mom never remarried?"

She shook her head. "Nope. Actually, I don't even think she's been on a date since then."

They ordered their drinks, a root beer and a Snapple, then sunk back into a comfortable silence. But, it eventually became old. "So, tell me more about yourself, Holly," he said, playing with the straw.

She bit her lower lip, desperately trying to remember what Garcia had told her before. "Uh, I run a lot, mostly with Menace. We're basically attached at the hip," she said, slower than she had wanted to. "I skateboard, too."

"Really?"

"Yeah, for 'bout a year and a half. I play basketball... Used to play soccer."

"Wow, you must work out a lot."

She chuckled, softly. "I guess. What about you? What's your True Hollywood Story?"

He smiled and then took a sip of his soda. "Well, my mom died a few years ago, so it's just me, Kalli, and my dad. Uh, I pretty much just chill with Julius and my friends all day. There ain't much to do here, really."

"Yeah... That's what Julius told me when I met him. Guess it must be true. So what do you do to entertain yourself, then?" She picked up the bottle of Iced Tea and took a swallow.

"Ah, well, there's always harassing Justin. That's always fun," he said, flicking his head to get the hair from his eyes. She felt her face set on a look of resentment. "But, uh, usually we go see movies or grab some grub."

She slowly nodded. Bethany shifted her weight, not sure whether he had been joking or not. "Great. Just what I need," she muttered. "Hey, uh, sorry about my mom before. She's just a little over protective of me now, I guess."

Aedon shook his head, dismissively. "Don't worry about it; I'd be worried to if I had a daughter as good-looking as you," he said just as the waiter returned with their pizza. They both said a quiet thank-you, Bethany still blushing from his previous comment.

Doubts forgotten, she dove into the food. He watched her intensely as she ate, chewing slowly, as if to savor the moment. She would glance up, then smile, and look away just as quickly. After her third small piece, she had enough, leaning back into the cushion behind her. "That was... Better than I expected," she admitted, wiping her greasy fingers on the napkin lying on her lap.

He nodded, setting down his fourth piece. "Mm, their stuff is always good." He paused, then gave a sly smile. "You all set?"

She nodded, slowly, inwardly swearing that she had made that obvious. He continued, "come on, then." He dropped a twenty dollar bill along with a ten and a five on the table before standing, and extending a hand to her. She took it, standing as well. They walked like that out of the restaurant, passing table after table of younger kids and their families. Some of the adults gave them disapproving looks, but they were ignored.

Once into the fresh summer air, Bethany leaned on his arm a bit to get closer. His only reaction was to slide his right hand over her shoulders and pull her against him. She smiled; she could smell the faint scent of Axe on him. "Can I walk you home?" he asked into her hair, as he was easily two inches taller.

She glanced up and laughed a bit. "You have to ask?"

"So, that's a 'yes', then?"

"That was definitely a 'yes'."

They strolled down the sidewalk in silence, his arm still snaked around her shoulders, her arm around his waist. "This is nice," she said quietly after a while.

"Yeah."

Not long after, Bethany and Aedon had nearly arrived, for she could hear Menace barking from their backyard. She shook her head a fraction, but it was unnoticed by him. At her front door, he stopped, and turned to her, gently withdrawing his arm. She did the same. "I had fun tonight," he admitted. "You're really cool. I hope we can do this again sometime?"

Bethany's smile seemed to spread a little wider. "I'd like that."

He grinned possibly just as big, despite Prentiss' face appearing in the window behind him. "Good." With that, he bent down, for what seemed like a kiss on the forehead. But, she was pleasantly surprised when he passed there and his lips pressed to hers. She shut her rise after the initial shock, but kissed back. It was she who pulled away first, biting her lower lip and blushing profusely. He pulled her to him for a hug and softly kissed the top of her head. "I'll call you tomorrow," he promised.

"Okay." She pushed the door open, raising a hand to wave goodbye. He gave her one last look before turning away and beginning his walk home. Bethany stumbled into the house, shut the door, and practically floated into the living room, where Emily was now trying to look casual, straightening out the curtains.

"How'd it go?" she asked, nonchalantly.

"Amazing," she stated simply.

She looked at the clock. "He got you here before eight-thirty; you have my approval."

"It's only eight-thirty?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I wanted to watch America's Most Wanted."

Prentiss gave her a puzzled look. "Why do you need to watch that? I work for the FBI, so I can just _tell_ you, remember?"

* * *

It was a Sunday, the next day. Emily awoke to find it was nine forty-five, with a groan. She got up, took a shower, then went down stairs to make some eggs for her and Bethany, to find the house almost completely silent. Menace was lounging on the floor of the kitchen, next to his elevated dog bowls. He sprung up when she entered, then shook himself. She patted him before opening the refrigerator. "Holly? What do you want for breakfast?" she called, expecting her to be watching TV or something in the other room. But, alas, she got not a single word in reply.

Puzzled, she straightened up and shut the door. "Holly?" she called again. No answer. Now slightly peeved, she and Menace searched the bottom floor entirely before heading up to her bedroom. As she knocked, the door pushed open. The bed had been made and the dirty clothes were still next to the entryway, but the teenager was nowhere to be found.

Prentiss' first instinct was to panic, but given her job, she stayed calm, and just took the home phone, and dialed her cell phone number. It went straight to voicemail. After leaving a message, she dialed a different number. "Office of Supreme Knowledge; I'm so good you're never on hold. How can I help you, peaches?" came Penelope's cheery voice from the other end of the line.

Under any other circumstances, she probably would have at least smiled at this, but she was too distracted to pay much attention. "Garcia? It's Emily. Bethany's gone."

After a second of dead silence, she finally croaked out, "what?"

She sighed. "I woke up late, and got up to get breakfast for her, but she's not here. Can you track her cell phone for me? I tried it before, but she's not answering."

"Can do." There were a few clicks in the background. "Bad news, bunny; she must have turned it off. I can't help you if her phone's off."

Emily wiped her hand over her face, with a muttered, "oh God." Louder she continued, "Okay, thanks Garcia. I'm taking the dog to look for her."

"Keep me posted?"

"Will do. And Garcia?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't tell Hotch yet, please. I don't want him to worry unless we have reason to be worried."

They hung up, and she was out of the house with Menace in a flash. They walked down the road, the dog's head to the ground, tail in the air. Her eyes scanned every little crevice of space around her. There weren't many people around to ask if they'd seen her, so she felt a little guilty. "Come on, kid," she muttered.

Ten minutes after leaving the house, her phone rang out from her pocket. Without bothering to check the caller ID, she picked up. "Holly?"

"No, it's JJ," came her friend's very confused voice.

"Oh, hi," she replied, eyes still glued to the atmosphere around her.

"Garcia told me something along the lines of you may be needing my help?"

She stopped walking. "Did she say why?"

"No."

"Oh. No, no it's fine Jayje," she assured. "I'll take care of it."

"If you're sure..."

"I am. I've gotta go, sorry."

"Uh, okay. Call me if you change your mind, though," JJ pressed, still sounding confused.

"Will do."

She spent the better part of an hour canvassing the neighborhood. It was fairly quiet and uneventful until her phone once again rang out. But, before she had the chance to answer, Garcia spoke. "Her phone just switched back on. She's at the corner of Oak Drive and Greene Meadow Road," she said hurriedly.

"That's right around the corner from here," she replied, quickening her pace, worried as to what she may find. "If I don't call you back in ten minutes, grab Hotch, okay?"

"Got it. Get 'er."

She almost took the corner at a sprint, but stopped when she saw what was there. If front of her eyes, just across the street, stood Bethany in a pair of Daisy Duke's, a nice tee-shirt, and flip-flops, standing outside of what seemed to be a Baptist church. Prentiss gave a sigh of relief, before feeling some anger bubble within her. She and Menace crossed the road swiftly, stopping feet from the nervous-looking teenager. She gave a hopeful half-smile, but knew she was in deep.

"You want to explain why I didn't find a note?"

Her forehead creased. "Whadda' talking about? I left on the counter. It wasn't there?" she asked.

Prentiss shook her head. "There was nothing on the counter when I got up." She sighed. "You know what, just forget it. I'm just glad you're okay. You had your aunt worried sick about you."

"Pennie? Really?"

"Yes. Now, call her before she calls in the heavy artillery."

Once Bethany hung up from her call, she turned to her fake mother. "Guess who I sat with?" Without even waiting for a reply, she continued. "Justin Bey. Turns out the kid's a little creepy. He said he hates going home, so church was the only other option on Sunday's. And, get this, he said his dad keeps nagging him to get himself a girlfriend. Pretty weird, huh?"

"You're just lucky something good came out of this, or your ass would have been grounded," she joked in a serious tone.


	10. Chapter 10

_So, here's chapter 10. You're quite lucky, I must say, to be getting this. Literally, I had to crank this out in a matter of two hours because a.) I'm a terrible procrastinator, b.) I'm uber, UBER tired from camping this weekend, and c.) I was disappoited by the lack of reviews and stuff this week. :( But, here you go. It's shorter than I'd like, and than I'd anticipated, and frankly I feel like I didn't do a good job on this one. Um, I'm not sure when the next one is coming, hopefully next weekend as well, just keeping on pace, but you never know with my insane life. This one is almost completely Bethany oriented, which I suppose is good in some respects. I promise I will at least try to make a Prentiss chapter, but again, no garuntees. I do need reviews to keep me going, because my muse is fizzling out. The inspiration bug needs to come and hit me in the face again. Moving on... This one is the beginning of the end, so to speak. There will be at least four more chapters before the end. Hope you enjoy this, because I had to watch mulitple episodes to get this finished. Love and loads of thanks to follwers. - Taylor. xx _

_Disclaimer:** Hmm... Criminal Minds, you say? Not mine. Characters not from the show? Ha! They're all mine. Oh, and Ghostbusters isn't mine either. Although it is my text message ring, lol.**_

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

Bethany glanced over at Julius to her right, then Aedon to her left and finally to Prentiss across from her. She was biting her lower lip so hard, she thought she could have drawn blood. Emily seemed to be silently profiling everybody in the room, chin up and shoulders back; what she had come to recognize as the business pose. She shot her discrete glares of annoyance, but she received no reaction in return.

Julius's father offered her some pasta as he was serving his wife, so she accepted, passing her plate to him. When it was back, she poured some sauce on it and grabbed a piece of baguette bread from the basket in front of her. After a quick, muttered prayer, she picked up her fork and began eating alongside the rest in the room, feeling sufficiently awkward.

After what seemed like an eternity of silence, Aedon's father Robert spoke. "So, Holly, tell us about yourself a little."

She stopped herself from rolling her eyes. This had to be the fifth time someone said that to her in two weeks alone. "Well, I run a lot," she began after swallowing the mouthful of stuffed pasta. "Uh, I play basketball, too. I was on my old school's varsity since the sixth grade."

"Impressive," he replied, raising both eyebrows. "Tell me, what position do you play?"

"Wherever they need me. I'm pretty versatile." There were a few nerve endings that kept repeating 'off, off!'.

"And very articulate, I might add," Julius' father Mateo said, wiping the sides of his mouth with a napkin. "Do you enjoy English?"

"Yes." Bethany returned to chewing before they could ask any more stupid questions.

Lucky for her, the subject was dropped and changed. "What about Mrs.

Kingston?"

Prentiss didn't miss a beat. "Please, all me Joan," she insisted with a small smile. "I'm an online accountant; I work from home."

Julius threw Bethany a look that she couldn't quite decipher. It was a mixture of confusion, mild approval, and something else... She narrowed her eyes and furrowed her brows. Kalli glanced between the two as the adults began to speak again. She was nice, but still a bit wary of Bethany. She just didn't feel as though she had to state there was no reason to be.

As the night wore on, everyone learned something new about the people around them. Mr. Parker was a middle school social studies teacher, Mrs. Parker was a pediatrician, and Robert was an engineer working at a plant a few hours away. He explained to them how he often took the train there to save the money of moving into the expensive district. He even made a point of telling them how he ironed his uniform the night before to save energy.

Bethany learned Kalli was a bit like herself; athletic, adventurous, a music lover, and strong willed. However, she played soccer and volleyball.

Julius played football, but was much more concerned with making his college resume look good. Aedon shared about how he needed to improve his guitar skills if he wanted to be in a hot-shot local band. Bethany made something up about Menace, and Prentiss did the same about the town they had supposedly moved from.

Aedon's father struck her as weird. Not 'mad serial killer'-strange, but 'iron your underwear'-strange. Although she couldn't quite put a finger on what was off about him, she chose to ignore it and put it off as overly organized.

The conversation changed from sports, to television, to school, to friends, and many more topics before they decided to call it a night at nearly nine o'clock.

* * *

Julius called her bright and early to ask 'to chill' all day. She agreed and they met at the park near the small elementary school, only a ten minute walk from her house. She scribbled out a note for Emily and left it on the kitchen counter before leaving. Menace tagged along, no leash attached so he could run around in the fields.

Julius was alone there when she arrived, sitting on a low hanging, black swing, ignoring the chains to hold onto. He was staring at the ground, face emotionless. She silently sat beside him and rocked herself forward and back gently. She also looked to the ground, elbows leaning on her knees. She heard the dog trot around somewhere in front of them, absently, but kept her ears focused in case her friend spoke.

"I need to talk to you, Holly," he stated, sounding a bit hesitant. She was taken a little off guard.

"Okay... Go for it."

He sat up straighter, actually looking over at her. She did the same, being sure to make some eye-contact. "I'm a pretty simple guy," he started. "What you see is what you get, with me. But, all of a sudden, I don't feel like that; like, something's changed, and people don't see me like that anymore."

She furrowed her brows. "You're not fully making sense. I think you're pretty straight forward. Care to be more specific, there?"

He sighed quietly, looking away again. "It's Kalli. We've been going out for eight months, and ever since she got back from vacation, she doesn't seem to trust me in the same way. Or anyone, for that matter. It's like she thinks I'm hiding something."

"Well, are you?"

"No! Of _course_ not. My life is an open book," he protested.

"Maybe it's not you then... Maybe it's her." From her pocket, her phone exploded into the Ghostbusters theme song, signaling a text message. She read it quickly, then stood. "Look, that was Aedon; he wants me to meet him for a late breakfast. I think you and Kalli need to seriously talk. Get her to tell you what's wrong, but don't push her. If she really likes you, she'll tell you."

He looked up to her, a softened expression smoothing over the stone. "Thank you... For listening."

"No problem." She turned to the field. "Come on, Menace," she called to her shepherd now sprinting towards her.

* * *

The following day, Bethany decided to seek out Justin so they could talk. She texted him, but received no reply, so, being the never-cautious teenager she was, she took it upon herself to walk to Justin's house, incidentally down the street from Aedon's. She gave Prentiss a fleeting wave, and, leaving the whining dog behind, she took off. She passed some of the nosier neighbors, who asked where she was headed, how everything was, the usual, obnoxious questions, all of which she expertly lied her way out of, knowing the guilt of all her lies would eventually catch up with her.

When she actually arrived at the Bey home, Justin was sitting on the front steps, staring into space. Tenitively she lowered herself to sit beside him in an awkward silence she knew she had to break. "Hey..." It was a loaded word.

He blinked, then turned his head. "What are you...?" he trailed.

"I, uh, I wanted to ask you something," she began. He nodded, slowly. "I was wondering... What happened to your mom and sister?"

Justin looked away, too quickly. "My mom, she was a nurse. High up, too. She made good, honest money, and everybody in the hospital couldn't help but love her. She was kinda weird - my dad called it 'quirky' - er, at least her sense of humor was. She never took anything to seriously, never." He drew in a deep, slow breath. "She always used to tell me that I could be anything I wanted to be. My dad wanted me to be some high-paid lawyer, actually he still does, but my mom never said that. She told me to never stop chasing my dreams. She was good like that, you know. She told my sister the same thing, too.

"Emma... She was two years older than me. She was amazing at soccer; she could play anywhere and do it well. I don't know if you've ever had any siblings, but Em and I weren't like any siblings I know of. We were so close,

Holly. We would do just about anything for each other. She went to every school function of mine she could, and I did the same for her. If I needed help with math, or-or baseball, or anything, she would help me. We would look out for each other constantly. I mean, sure we teased each other sometimes, but in the end, we were best friends. But, she had this tournament in North Carolina one week, and I was going to go, but Dad needed me to help him fix up our garage..."

He stopped, still not looking at her, so she decided to jump in. "My dad... He was a talent scout for some record company. He had to go out and watch a band near Annapolis one night, at some club. When he was driving home, he got hit by a drunk driver. He was DOA." She tried to sound as believable as possible.

Justin didn't say anything for a few minutes. "They were only supposed to be gone for a couple of days. They were supposed to come home and everything should have been fine, but... They started driving home on Thursday, and they called at eight-thirty to say they may have to stay at a hotel for the night because of how tired Mom was. Not an hour later we got a call from North Carolina police saying there had been an accident. Turns out some dumbass fell asleep at the wheel and run them off the road. They flipped four or five times down a hill, and died instantaneously. My dad completely lost it for a while. He worked himself so hard, just trying to scrape up some cash, then finally made me get a job."

Bethany leaned over and wrapped her arms around him, a little hesitantly. "I'm the last person to ever say 'I'm sorry', because I know how stupid it is to say, but I know what it's like... It completely sucks, eh?" she said quietly, noticing the face of Mr. Bey appearing in the garage window. She narrowed her eyes before pulling away.

"Thanks for this; I seriously needed it," he admitted finally, looking back into her eyes.

She shook her head with a small smile. "It's really nothing, honest." There was a pause, but it was comfortable. "Hey, uh, Justin, what about your dad? What's he been like besides overworking himself?"

She saw him physically freeze for a second. His eyes glazed over, rejecting the level of confidentiality they had only just reached. He stood, abruptly. "I think you need to leave," he stated, staring straight ahead.

She jumped up as well. "Justin, I-"

"Just go, _please_."

All she could do was nod, it seemed. "Okay... I'm sorry for bringing it up." With that, she shoved her hands into the pockets of her Daisy Dukes and walked away, feeling the eyes of Walter Bey follow her until she was out of sight.

She knew then he had every sign pointing to him as their unsub, and yet, didn't want to believe that innocent Justin had anything to do with the murders.

* * *

_Hmm... What do we think of our elusive unsubs? _

_OH! And who didn't love the season premiere last Wednesday? It was freakin-amazing! That little girl was so brave, I had to stop myself from crying with pride- for once, no damsels in distress! She had SPUNK! Haha, so, yeah that's my little freak out moment here. Reviews are loved, as always!_


	11. Chapter 11

__

Hurray for action and creative license! Here's chapter eleven for ya. There's not much to say about it besides I had a lot of fun writing it, for the most part. The beginning is bad, I know, but whatever. I did my homework to find out where things were for this little number, so don't bother me about that. So, uhh... Just enjoy! - Taylor! xx

PS- The centering isn't working for me. It's annoying. And the next one should be up next Saturday or Sunday... Aaanndd I have to wave my goodbye to AJ Cook, but she will **NEVER** leave my stories. **NEVER**. :)

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

Bethany had crashed through the front door, tripping over the door step, and nearly split her skull on the banister in her rush to find Emily. Menace appeared at the top of the stairs, curiously starring. She ignored him as she heard ruffling in the living room. There, on the comfy leather sofa was her surrogate mother, reading a thick novel, sock-clad feet resting atop the coffee table. "Hey," Beth greeted, sitting across from her, beside the feet. "I think I know who it is."

Prentiss snapped the book shut with a dull popping sound, and put it beside her. She crossed her arms and retracted her mile-long legs. "Do you have a stressor?" she asked, skeptically.

"If you count having your wife and daughter killed in a car that flipped five times, then yeah, I have a stressor," she replied, half sighing the last word. "Look, Garcia checked him out all ready, but this guy has to be it. He was watching me and Justin the whole time we were talking, and when I asked him about his dad, he told me to leave. Leave! There's something uber creepy about him!"

Choosing to ignore the 'uber' part, Emily picked up the phone from the table and expertly dialed Hotch's familiar number. "Hotch, it's Prentiss," she said as soon as she heard him pick up.

"What's up, Prentiss?" he replied, monotoned.

"Girl wonder here thinks our unsubs are Walter and Justin Bey. We had

Garcia check them before and they seem to fit the profile pretty damn well. The kid is fifteen, the mother and daughter were killed in a car accident, and the father is pushing his son to do things he doesn't want to do."

She could practically see him frown. "Well, keep an eye on him for now until you get more solid proof. He may fit the profile, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's him. Just tell Bethany to be careful, and you, too."

* * *

It was nine o'clock on a Wednesday night when Emily's cell phone had practically rung itself off the coffee table. She had excused herself to the ladies room only a moment before, so Bethany was the one to answer it. "Hello?"

"Is this Emily Prentiss?" a feminine voice answered.

She wasn't sure what to say, whether to lie and say she didn't know anyone by that name, or to just hang up like nothing had even happened. "Uh, no, she's... Not available right now. Can I take a message?"

"This is Doctor Saunders at Medlink Hospital in Washington DC calling to say that her mother has had a minor stroke. It is nothing life threatening at present, however we will need to keep her here for a few days to monitor her condition."

Bethany early dropped the phone. "Uh, sure. I'll tell her right away."

"Thank you."

"No problem..." She hung up just as Prentiss reappeared, a small smile playing on her lips.

Upon seeing the shocked expression etched into Bethany's face, the smile faded and she stopped at the other end o the table. "What's wrong?"

"Some Doctor Saunders called from Medlink Hospital."

"In DC? What did they want?"

Carefully avoiding direct eye contact, she looked over at her. "Your mom had a small stroke."

Emily's mouth opened, then she shut it quickly. "Walk with me." They shut off the television and headed up stairs, entering Prentiss's room. "I'm going to call JJ, and she'll come here to watch you for a few days, alright? You're going to have to stay here for a while by yourself, though; it's two hours without traffic from here to Quantico," informed Emily as she threw together a go bag. "Promise me you'll lock the doors as soon as I leave. And, don't let anyone in except JJ."

She rolled her eyes a little, but agreed with a "yes, Mother." She watched her rush around for a few more minutes before ushering her to the door. Bethany gave her a sincere hug, which was returned, goodbye, before the raven-haired agent disappeared out the front door. She heard the engine roar to life, saw the headlights flick on, and watched as they dissipated as she drove away.

The second she was out of sight, Bethany ran back upstairs with Menace at her heels, into her bedroom, grabbed her mp3, and then ran back down. She plugged it into the speakers in the living room, then turned on 'Pretty Handsome Awkward' by the Used, picked up her book, and began to read. Before she knew it, there came a knock on the front door, so she put it down, lowered the volume of the speakers, now playing 'Dani California' by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and trotted to the door. Menace barked a few times as Bethany peered through the peep-hole conveniently placed in the brass knocker. She saw blonde hair, and pulled it open, revealing a flustered-looking Jennifer Jareau. She glanced from the dog to the girl as Beth grabbed a hold of his collar. "Come in," she said, stepping out of the way.

JJ, who was carrying a go bag of her own, did so, placing it under the small table beside the door. "Sorry you're stuck with me for a few days," she said as the girl let go of the dog and shut the door.

"Honestly, it's not that bad. I just hope Mrs. Prentiss is okay." She quietly ordered Menace to go upstairs, which he reluctantly did, stopping at the top and laying here.

"Me too."

They headed into the living room, Bethany shutting off her music quickly as the song flipped to 'I Write Sins Not Tragedies' by Panic! At the Disco. JJ sat down, leaning back a little. "So how's living with Emily?" she asked, looking over at her.

She smiled. "It's good. She's really cool, actually. I mean, she's a bit over protective, but other than that, it's been good."

"So, a little birdie told me you've gotten yourself a boyfriend here all ready," she stated with a sly grin.

"Er, yeah. His name is Aedon," she said, pulling out her phone to get a picture of him. "That's him." She handed over the phone so she could have a look.

"And she's okay with this?"

"She met him, and his father, and gave them the Prentiss seal of approval." They slipped into silence for a minute. "Hey, I think Castle is on. Wanna watch?"

* * *

By Friday morning, Bethany was fairly certain that JJ was a good mom. She had been caught twice trying to sneak chocolate chips as they made chocolate chip pancakes Thursday morning without even looking at her. It was no different from Emily besides the fact that she blamed it on 'eyes in the back of her head' rather than having taken profiling classes.

But, she was just as cool as Prentiss was, in her own way. Friday morning when she woke up and gone down stairs, there had been French toast waiting on the small table. She rubbed her eyes sleepily before plopping down. "You didn't have to, Aunt Jenn," she said after saying a silent grace.

Across from her, JJ sat as well. She shrugged. "I know, but I wanted to."

They sat in silence for a while, aside from the clinking of silverware on plates. It was fine by Bethany. She didn't particularly need any useless small talk anyway. But, it was inevitable that JJ would break that silence. "So... Have you told Emily yet?"

She shut her eyes for a second. "No, and right now I'm glad I haven't. She doesn't need to worry about anything else right now, especially something that isn't that big of a deal."

"She's going to find out eventually."

Her eyes snapped up and her fork clattered on her plate. "You're not going to tell her, are you?"

She shook her head and continued eating. "No," she answered after swallowing. "But she studies people for a living. Do you really think you can keep this a secret for much longer?"

All day JJ avoided Menace like the plague while Bethany did her best to keep them separate as much as possible, finally resorting to leaving him to his own devices in the backyard. That lasted for all of five minutes before he was sitting by the sliding door of the kitchen, whining to get in. Bethany sighed heavily. It was three in the afternoon, and after a whole day of doing nothing but reading and watching TV with her 'aunt', her patients was wearing thin. She thought she was going stir crazy, and that was just icing on the cake.

"Aunt Jenn!" she called through the small house from the back door. The blonde poked her head in after only a second, looking a little worried. "Come outside with me."

"Wh-"

"I'm going to cure your Cynophobia," she stated, sliding open the glass door. As JJ opened her mouth to protest, she raised her hand. "I know it's none of my business, but seriously, I think you need to get over this fear of Menace. He's the sweetest dog in the world. You have nothing to be afraid of. I know I'm outta line here, but please, just trust me?"

A little reluctantly, she followed her out onto the deck where the large dog stood wagging his tail in excitement. JJ seemed to shy away from him, but Bethany went behind her and nudged her forward a little. "Watch," she instructed, ducking back around, and kneeling to the ground beside the dog. He sat and attempted to lick her face, only to have his nose pushed away. "See? He's not going to hurt you if you don't hurt me. Just reach your hand out so he can sniff it. I'll even hold his collar."

As Bethany held both the choke collar and the leather one, the elder nervously held out a hand, slowly edging forward. He inhaled her scent before pressing his moist nose to her hand. She jumped, but didn't back away. Instead, she took a deep breath then another step forward. Menace licked it before she ran her palm down his neck. Beside him, Bethany grinned. "See? It was all an oxymoron."

After that, it was all smooth sailing for awhile. After a small dinner, they sat watching reruns of Numb3rs, JJ throwing in comments along the lines of 'that's not what it's like in the FBI...' until Bethany received a text from Aedon at eight-thirty. "Hey, Aunt Jenn? Can I go over to Aedon's? I won't be gone for more than an hour and a half, I swear," she promised, eyes pleading.

"Yeah, sure, just take your phone, and stay in the light. Oh, and bring Menace, too."

Bethany had left in a pair of black Daisy Dukes, and a grey tank top, cell phone stuffed into the back pocket. Behind her, she heard "be careful" to which she waved off. Her new basketball shoes were practically silent as she ran down the road with Menace beside her. After a few turns, she saw Aedon's house come into view. Aedon had never been fond of her dog, but had also been tolerant. She appreciated that immensely. As she passed Justin's house, which was only across the road, she heard muffled voices. Menace had obviously heard it before her, for he had all ready halted in front of her. She saved herself from tripping while trying to hear what was being said.

"Son, get her here, now. Anything you can say or do, you do it. No arguments!"

"But, Da-"

"I said no arguments. I'll do it myself of I have to. Get her mother here, too," said the first male.

"She's all ready coming. She's probably here by now."

"Make something up, get them both here now. Damn it, Aedon, just do it."

Bethany's eyes grew near to the size of saucers. Numbly, she reached into her pocket, withdrew her phone, and hit JJ's speed dial number. As it rang, she saw Aedon run at her from his house. By the time she picked up, he was nearly upon her. "JJ, it's Aedon; it's him and his dad," she said, hastily. "We were wrong! Call Hot-"

He wrenched it from her fingers, threw it to the ground, and stomped on it. Then, he produced a switchblade from his pocket, putting it up to her throat. By then, Menace had his teeth bared and was snarling at him, hair along his back standing on end. He lunged quite a few times, all narrowly missing. Roughly, the boy took her by the neck, and the dog by the leash attached, dragging them to the van in the driveway. "Dad! Get out here," he yelled over the snapping of jaws.

Bethany had nearly frozen when she had the knife to her neck, knowing much better than to scream and be killed. Desperately, her eyes searched the neighborhood for someone with their lights on. There weren't many on the street itself, being a dead end, but Justin's bedroom light was shining. A shadowy figure stood there, seemingly frozen. She silently screamed for him to see her mouthing 'help' over and over again. She felt herself being thrown into the back, Menace on top of her. He whimpered as he was cut in the back leg. She kicked the sides forcefully, making as much noise as possible.

Outside, she could hear another muffled exchange of words before to more doors slammed, and they sped off into the night. There were no windows where she was, nothing to hold onto, even, so she was tossed around like a ragdoll for a while. After at least twenty minutes of solitude, Aedon appeared from the front, switchblade still in hand. She froze as it was once again pressed to her throat, this time hard enough to draw blood. She winced, but otherwise gave him no satisfaction. Menace bared his teeth once more, but didn't they to do anything, probably for fear of getting her instead. From his other hand he produced a gag which he tied unnecessarily tight around her head. She was then blindfolded and her limbs were tied together. "Bitch," she heard him say before she felt the blade slice open her right cheek. Then, there was a scuffling sound, some jaw snaps, and a few snarls before he undoubtedly muzzled the dog.

They drove for what was probably another hour or two before they screeched to a halt, causing Bethany and Menace to slide into the seats. She inwardly winced. Seconds later, the back doors opened, the blindfold and leg-ties were ripped away from her body, and she was pulled rather rudely from the was shoved into a brick wall not four feet away, stumbling to catch herself from falling. She blinked a few times before realizing she was at a warehouse, and a rather large one, at that.

From behind her, a rough hand took a fistful of her hair and pulled her along. When she saw Aedon wrangling with the dog behind her, she knew it had to be Robert. As she was thrown through the door, she heard the snapping of jaws followed by a few muffled swears. Within seconds Menace was beside her, held away from Aedon's body by a make-shift catch pole. They were pulled through the crammed warehouse, then finally tossed into an empty, concrete room where blood spattered the walls and floor. Robert ripped the gag from her mouth, and almost immediately get saliva in his eyes. On reflex, he bitch slapped her across her cut cheek, blood splattering over her face further. "You're not to make a sound until we get back." He stood and turned to go.

"What, no threats?" she spat defiantly.

He spun back around and she received a boot to the ribs. She grunted, but glared up at him. "How's that for a threat?"

The door was slammed shut behind him as he left. Menace eased over to her and lay at her feet. With her arms tied, she couldn't pet him, but assumed he got the message, for he laid his head on her leg. "Whatever happens, buddy, I'll never forget you," she breathed.

Not two minutes later both returned, slamming the door. Menace sprang to his feet and snapped his jaws defensively. Aedon leered at him. "I never like this dumbass dog; always so protective of you," he said, slowly. It was then she saw the nine millimeter in his hand. "Never let me get too close. You know, they say that dogs have a sixth sense about people, now I guess it's true."

"Damn straight," she said.

Robert took the gun from his son. "I thought I told you to shut up, boy," he grunted.

"Why'd you do it? Huh? Why did you kill all those women? Did it make you feel powerful? I'm interested," Bethany hissed, feeling a tiny bit of nerve creep back into her soul. "Did you get off on it, too? What about you Aedon? Do you sleep well after everything you've done to those innocent people?"

"Like a baby," he snarled, a death glare at her. "You're going to end up just like them, you know why? Because you're just a bitch."

She gave a short, harsh laugh. "It's one of the perks to being a girl. Well, that and the fact that we can handle emotions better. I read somewhere that that's why it's less likely for women to become serial killers."

This set Aedon off first. He kicked out at her, but Menace had enough fight left to grab him by the ankle, if only for a second before leaving. He then turned on the dog, who was crouched low, teeth bared, and growling. Bethany felt her heart leap into her throat for a moment before Robert grabbed his son by the arm and jerked him back. "Leave the beast; we'll take care of it later." He turned to the girl on the floor. "Tell me where your mother is."

She shook her head. "Why the hell would I tell you?"

He knelt down beside her, an evil gleam in his dark eyes. "Because you want to live."


	12. Chapter 12

_So, I may have lied to you last upload... I got this done sooner than expected because I'm working on another one, and I'm trying to get its first chapter up on October 12 (it'd be awesome if you got the reference... Jsayin...). Anyway, I'd like to thank my seventh period study hall today for forcing me to whip out my trusty little iPod and start this, and my parents for leaving me alone long enough for me to finish it about half an hour ago. This one jumps to a lot of different places, but next chapter it will hopefully come together. I can't garuntee when the next chapter will be up because I myself can never predict how long a chapter will take me to write. Hopefully by the Sunday after next? Thought I'd suprise you today. Did I? Love everyone who reads this! - Taylorr! xx_

_Disclaimer: **So, it's not mine. Whaa? You wanna fight a'bot it?**_

* * *

Justin couldn't feel his feet even touch the ground as he sprinted down the pavement. It had been too late for him to get Holly, so he had instead yelled to his dad, who never answered, and run to her house to tell her aunt. He'd never thought he could run that fast, even when he was in better shape; he just hoped it would be fast enough so that he could at least wait until he was there to break down in an asthma attack.

The first thing he saw as he rounded Clark Street was the dark SUV parked in the Kingston driveway; it had to be her aunt's. He slowed as he crossed the yard before he began to pound on the door. "Help! Help!" he shouted.

Within a minute a thirty-something, blonde woman appeared, a concerned look creasing her otherwise attractive face. She opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, but he shook his head, desperately gasping for air. "Holly... Taken... Aedon... Robert... Quick," he choked out between wheezes.

It took a second for her to soak in what he was trying to tell her, but when it did, she looked as if she would have a heart attack. "Come in and get some water," she instructed in an urgent tone. He obliged, and the door was shut swiftly behind him.

JJ left the room after handing the kid some water. She whipped out her cell phone and punched the keys so fast, her thumbs turned into a blur. There was a click signaling someone picked up. "Hotch! It's JJ. Holly's been taken," she rushed. "It was Robert and Aedon all along. This kid saw it happen. We need to get Garcia on this right now."

She heard muffled voices in the background. "JJ, do you know who the agents are on guard right now?" he asked.

"No, I have no idea. Honestly, I didn't think anyone was."

He grunted, agitated now. "Stay right where you are and don't let the kid leave. He's our only witness and we might get something out of him we don't all ready know."

"Okay, I'm at the house. And Hotch? She called right before she was taken. She tried to tell me, but they must have smashed her phone."

"Don't get yourself worked up about this. We'll get her back." With that said, both ends hung up. Again JJ found herself punching in more numbers, only this time, she was sent to voicemail.

_"Hey, it's Emily; here comes the beep- leave a nice message."_

"Emily, it's Jayje. I know your with your mom and everything, but I really think you need to hear this. Bethany's been taken. Don't start panicking yet; the team is on their way and we know exactly who it is. Trouble is that we don't know where they went. Anyway, I'm sorry I had to drag you down like this. Call when you can."

* * *

Robert and Aedon had disappeared awhile ago, after playing around with the knives. They left her with slits on her biceps as well as mid-thigh. Her shirt had been ripped around the ribcage, blade splitting the skin underneath. She had winced and given slight grunts, but not given them anything to get off on. Menace had lived up to his name and given Aedon a run for his money. It took him literally sitting on top of him to get the dog from ripping him apart.

She was now slumped against the wall, carefully trying to get the painful wrist ties off. Menace had gashes over his shoulders from taking a few blows, but was bravely sitting tall beside her, jaw tight and ears perked. She gently patted his back, pulling herself to sit upright. "Hey, buddy," she muttered. "I'll be all right. Keep your ass outta trouble, will you?"

The door burst open, Rob stepping in first, Aedon flanking him. They said nothing, and the door slammed shut. "What's up, fellas?" she asked with a mock sense of interest.

"Shut up now."

"So, tell me, did you kill your wife, too?" She knew full well she was pushing her luck, but being as impulsive as she was, she just couldn't stop herself.

Aedon gave her a death glare, Robert all but choked her. "On ya' feet," he barked. "Now."

"Okay, pushy," she muttered, using the wall to stand up.

"Turn so you're facing the wall." She reluctantly did so, glancing down at the statue of Menace. He was waiting for her order now. "Take a step back."

As she did, she let her eyes travel to Aedon. He had the same look on his face as before. She shot him an annoyed, disapproving expression before shutting her eyes for a second. "What're you gonna do?" she bit.

There was a short chortle behind her. "Whatever it takes to get what I want." She felt the tip of his blade rest on the middle of her spine. "Now, are you ready to tell me where your darling mother is?"

"No."

She felt a - no pun intended - stabbing pain along her spine, and bit back a scream. "How about now?"

"No."

She was roughly spun around, disorienting her enough that she couldn't see the blade heading straight for her gut. That was the one that finally caused her to yelp. It wasn't deep enough to pierce any vital organs, but was in a really sensitive area. "I'm giving you one more chance," he growled as he tore the knife back.

"I-I don't know," she lied. "She just took off. Next thing I know, my aunt Jenn is there."

He tutted with his tongue. "How very irresponsible. Worry not, child, we will find her and bring her here as well. It's just a matter of time. In the mean time, if you behave yourself, you get your hands back."

She grunted as the ties were cut with the bloody knife. Aedon was holding off the dog as he stood, but Menace once again lived up to his name and got loose. He snarled and snapped his jaws at the boy before charging him with every intention of ripping his head off. In the blink of an eye, he withdrew a gun from the back waistline of his jeans, and pulled the trigger with it pointed right at him. The large shepherd was hit square in the chest, and his limp body fell back to earth, a piercing scream escaping the girl's lips. With a smug smile, he pocketed the gun, and they exited without another word.

* * *

Nearly three hours after JJ's frantic phone call the rest of the BAU, save for Emily, arrived at the house, all wearing matching expressions of anxiety. Justin, who had been sitting at the kitchen table, starring at his empty glass of water, jumped as the door banged open. Penelope, who had tagged along, ran and threw her arms around JJ. Hotch and Rossi were more subdued, and simply entered the kitchen without a sound. Morgan and Reid carried in Garcia's equipment and placed it in the living room.

The boy looked up at the two older men now sitting across from them. He looked confused. "Are you the cops?" he asked.

"No, actually Justin, we're the FBI."

"FBI? Why are you here?"

Rossi shifted in his chair. "We came here to catch a killer. Mrs. Kingston is actually one of our team members, she and Holly went undercover for us to try and lure them out," he explained slowly.

"So Holly... That's not her real name?"

"No, actually it's Bethany."

Hotch folded his hands on the table. "Look, Justin, we need you to tell us exactly what you saw."

"Well, it was dark, but she was under a street light. She stopped and was on the phone, probably with... Whoever that blonde woman is. Aedon came out of the house, grabbed her and shoved her into his dad's van. His dad grabbed Menace, and they just drove off. When they grabbed her though, I think she saw me. She kept mouthing 'help'. I was too late to save her, but I knew I had to tell someone. My dad was drunk out of his mind, so I ran all the way here."

"And that's it?"

"What about the sister? Bethany mentioned to agent Prentiss that he had a sister."

"Kalli? Last I knew her dad sent her to stay with her friend's in Richmond for the week. Wait, so you're saying that Aedon and his old man are the ones killing all those women?" he asked, just putting two and two together.

The men stood together. Rossi nodded, grimly. "Afraid so."

Justin put his head in his hands, and they left the room. Hotch flew into the living room where Derek was bein bossed around by Garcia in attempts to assist her in setting up her various necessary electronics. Both heads snapped up as they entered, the redhead's eyes filled with concern. "Anything?"

"From what he says, JJ was right; she did try to tell us, but they smashed her phone. She got thrown into a van and they drove off. He said the sister is at a friend's in Richmond."

"Garcia, can you find out the plate number and try to track it down?" Hotch asked, but it sounded more of a statement.

"I'm your girl."

Bethany had lost track of time. After Menace had been shot, every second seemed to drag on for hours. Having her hands freed, she had stroked his blood stained coat and said her final goodbyes before sliding along the wall to the far side of the room. She saw where her blood had begun to pool where she was sitting, as well as the smears now on the wall, but she ignored the pain and tried again to stay strong. Her body had taken a beating, but she knew it wasn't even half over.

In attempt to keep her mind off the pain, she began to pray. It was something she had done since she was a little girl, but hadn't truly made a plea to God since she was diagnosed with cancer. She begged for Prentiss to be safe, as well as the team, said the Lord's prayer, gone through the whole 'if I die before I wake...' shebang, then rambled off other things she could think of, neglecting to ask for her life. She figured it was her time, after having overcome so much. Hell, she knew she wasn't invincible, and being taken down by a serial killer basically guaranteed her name would not soon be forgotten. However, she never really wanted the fame or recognition, but to never be forgotten by those she loved.

_What a sap,_ she thought to herself, shifting to be more comfortable.

_There's only so much you can see in the world before your time is up._

_Okay, I know I'm fairly pessimistic, but this is ridiculous. 'What if's' are done._

* * *

Emily Prentiss was delighted with the news that her mother was almost fully recovered. The stroke had been so small, she hadn't needed extensive care. She was back to her old self- inquiring about her personal life, bringing back "the old days", and whining and complaining about needing to get back to work. Lucky for her daughter, she had enough evasive skills to not answer any personal questions just yet.

On Saturday morning, however, Elizabeth Prentiss had taken a sudden nose dive for the worse. Doctors and nurses had buzzed around the room for hours before she decided to step out of the building to check her phone for the first time since Friday afternoon. She didn't put it past Bethany to leave a few text messages. Outside, she sat on a metallic green bench and pulled out her cell. On the screen read '1 new voicemail'. Her brow furrowed as she listened to it. A frown creased her face as the words sunk in. _No-freaking-way. _Was it karma or just bad luck?

She dialed JJ's number without even looking at the numbers and ran a hand through her dark hair. "JJ? It's Emily. Have you heard anything?"

"No, nothing yet, but we're getting close. We tried tracking the plate on his van, but came up with nothing. Look, don't freak out about this. We'll find her, I promise. You just take care of your mom," her friend instructed, gently.

"Okay... Thanks JJ. Call me as soon as you hear anything."

"Will do."

* * *

_If you hate me, I completely understand... I didn't want Menace to die either. He was such a good boy... *sniffle* Ha, anyway. Hope you enjoyed it._


	13. Chapter 13

__

_Alright, so let me just start off with the fact that there are some choise words in this chapter that would NOT make my mother vrey proud. That's a very fair warning, okay?_

_So, anyway... I can totally hear the profilers out there right now: "Her updates are getting closer together... I think she's ramping up for something." Well, you can -please don't take offense to this- suck it because here comes the climax, baby. I think you're really going to enjoy most of this one. I actually had this done last night, but my daddy dearest was hogging the computer until three in the morning and by then I figured 'screw it, I'll post it tomorrow'. So, yeah. Happy Coloumbus Day, America! I love not having school on a Monday; it's so refreshing. This is totally disorganized, right here. ^^ This jumps views a lot, so, hopefully the lines should keep you on track. Um, next one could be out within the week, could not, I honestly don't know for sure. Enjoy this one! - Taylor! xx_

WARNING: **Majorly graphic images as well as cussing in this chapter. If any of it offends you in anyway, I'm so sorry, but stop reading.**

_Disclaimer: **When have I ever said I owned Criminal Minds?...**_

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen**

_Shit... Shit... SHIT! This is NOT good, _Bethany concluded after she lost feeling in her right foot. Her torture had escalated since their last visit. This time, they resorted to kicking the crap out of her. Aedon went for her upper half while Robert enjoyed himself as he snapped her ankle. She yelped, but bit down on her lip to stop the scream bubbling in her throat.

"You know, son, I think she is the most rewarding one yet."

He grunted his agreement as he sent a particularly cruel blow to her wrists, which were crossed over her face in defense. She moaned, feeling her resistance begin to fade. The fight was beginning to die inside of her soul. She had to practically strain herself to keep her eyelids open; knowing she probably had a concussion. "They're going to find me," she stated, weakly.

"Who is? Your stupid mother? Your dead father? I'm shakin now, how 'bout you, Dad?"

"Shut up, boy," he said, gruffly, stopping his torture to pry her arms away from her face. "Who's gonna find you, huh? You got the cops keeping tabs on you? Well I got news for you, girlie- the fuzz ain't caught us yet, and they ain't gonna."

"No, not the cops you stupid bastard," she bit, flinching away from his touch. "The FBI."

Both men blinked, dumbly at her. "FBI?" Robert asked, recovering first.

"Yeah. My mother, you know, the one you've been drooling over for weeks, isn't actually my mom. She's an FBI agent. They were onto you the whole time, so it's just a matter of time before they find you and you get thrown in jail."

He gave a feeble, short laugh. "You think the feds are gonna find me? They probably don't even know where to look."

"Don't count your chickens, dumbass," she growled.

* * *

JJ was pacing the length of the living room, biting the knuckles on her right fingers. Garcia was expertly ignoring her as her fingers danced in a rapid fashion over the keys. Morgan and Hotch had escorted Justin home, and to see if His father had anything to add to his story. Reid was giving a bored-as-hell Rossi a lecture on statistics of finding her in a state the size of Virginia, as well as the possibilities of being in a different state. All were as stressed as ever, one in particular more than the others. The tension as a whole, however, was so thick that you could slice it clean with a knife.

It was momentarily broken when Aaron and Derek strode through the front door, wearing different expressions of exasperation. "Poor kid's dad's a drunk," Morgan stated, grimly. "I'm calling social services as soon as we find Bethany. I can let him go home to that every day."

Hotch silently agreed, but slipped into the living room swiftly. "How's it coming, Garcia?"

"Slowly, Boss Man," she replied absently. "I narrowed down the possible locations to a storage warehouse ten miles out of Annapolis, a foreclosed apartment complex he bought as a fixer-upper, and a plant he was laid off from a few months ago, all of which are fairly close to each other."

"Any lucky with tracking Aedon's cell phone, Baby Girl?"

"Nada, and trust me, I dug."

Hotch ran his hands through his hair, then down his tired face. "All right, why don't you give us the addresses of the locations, and we'll split up and search them all."

"Hotch, man, why don't we all go together. If one of us shows up with no back up, there's no way to know how it's going to end. We can try the plant first, then the complex, then the warehouse."

He simply nodded. "Everyone in the SUVs in five. Garcia, I want those coordinates ASAP."

* * *

"Where are your little FBI friends now, huh? I don't see them busting down the door right now," Aedon taunted a half-conscious Bethany.

"Bite me," she spat. "Besides, you don't care to know what my real name is or my 'mom's? No interest at all?"

"Frankly, I don't give a shit, bitch. If I really cared, I would have asked you. And speaking of asking, I don't recall asking you to speak, now did I?"

"Just because you can kill me doesn't mean you have the right to 'let' me talk. You and your asshole father will get enough of that in prison; only it'll probably be the other way around."

He just lifted his middle finger at her and threw a switchblade at her, lazily. It landed three feet to her right. She lifted a brow. "Does torturing people always make you fuck up a simple throw like that? Cuz' I'm pretty sure that was the girliest throw I've ever seen," she mused, airily. "So," she sighed, "You and your ol' man seriously think this ridiculous scheme of yours is going to work, eh? Tell me, have you ever visited a mental institution?"

He clenched his jaw. "Stuff it, bitch," he growled through his teeth.

"I was just asking because I'm pretty sure they made them especially for the men in your family." She may have been tired, but she was having too much fun provoking him to care about that or the searing pain in her ankle and wrists. "What about Kalli- does she know she's been living with psychopaths for the past few years?"

That was it for him. He took two steps forward, raised his foot and kicked out as hard as he could. "You... Need... To... Shut... Your... Mother... Fucking... Mouth!" he exclaimed, delivering a painful blow with each word. Bethany clutched her ribs, the pain finally getting to her. When he decided she was finally broken, he left, slamming the door shut behind him.

* * *

JJ sat shotgun, holding the door handle like a life line. It had taken them two and a half hours to get to the first location, then another two to clear the first two sights. So, not only was she exhausted, she was also running out of hope, and fast. She knew she wasn't the only one, though. She could hear Reid's knee bouncing up and down, Morgan's middle finger tapping the doorframe, and

Rossi's eerily calm, yet loud, breathing. Hotch, meanwhile, had a white-knuckle, death-grip on the steering wheel.

As they pulled down the street the warehouse was supposedly on, everyone was on edge. They passed a number of others, all tagged with brightly colored graffiti, on either side. They had called for a stand-by with an ambulance as well as local police reinforcements, just in case. They just hoped they wouldn't need either.

The door swung violently open, bouncing off the concrete walls as if they were made of rubber. His expression was one of pure hatred and rage. Bethany glanced up, not being able to move anymore to look at him. In his hand, she saw the piece, and yet, she wasn't scared. She knew what was coming. "How did they find me?"

She shook her head a fraction. "I don't know. But, I told you they would."

"This is all your fault." She didn't even have the energy to fight back, or deny his false statement. "And you're going to pay."

Meanwhile, outside, all of the agents had their guns drawn and were rushing into the building. Hotch and Morgan went in first, with JJ sandwiched between them and Reid and Rossi. They swept through the aisles, shouts of "clear!" ringing through the large warehouse. Out of the back corner, Morgan and JJ both heard rapid footsteps they knew did not come from any of them. He signaled for Rossi and Reid to help corner whoever was running.

In a whirl of blurry motion, there was a shout, a thud, and a grunt of resistance. Morgan was pinning down a kid around his mid teens with long black hair, and a smug look on his face. "That's Aedon," said JJ in a disgusted tone.

He flipped him over and slapped on handcuffs as roughly as possible. "Where is she, kid?" he demanded.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Derek jerked him to his feet and practically threw him to Rossi with a muttered "Get him outta here". When they disappeared, he picked his weapon back up and hurried to catch up with JJ and Hotch. Reid followed.

He could hear faint words floating from a room off the side wall. "And you're going to pay..." Without a second thought, all four remaining agents sprinted towards the voice, but realized they were moments too late...

_Bang, bang, bang!_ rang across the vacant space, piercing the otherwise total silence that surrounded. There was a triumphant smile, then more loud gun shots from further away. He slumped to the ground in a heap before people flooded in. Hotch knelt by his body, checking for a pulse, but found none.

JJ knelt beside that of Bethany, who was barely recognizable. Blood cached her face and clothes, matted hair also had blood in it, and skinnier than anyone had ever seen her. She yelled for paramedics when she felt that ever so faint pulsation in her neck. Once stretched on a gurney with an IV in her arm, and people trying to stop her bleeding, the liaison refused to leave her side. She gripped her hand tightly, as if she were the one lay dying instead of reality.

It seemed to take a lifetime to race out of the maze of shelves to get to the ambulance just outside. JJ never tore her eyes off the lifeless body she was clutching until she had to step inside behind them. The men ordered her to stay back so they could help her as best as they could, so she only scooched to the side a bit, never letting go. After a few seconds to get the gurney in place, they took off with sirens blaring. Suddenly, the beeping that had kept the agent sane turned into one long sound.

"She's flat lining!" one announced, not a second later, all ready having the paddles in hand to revive her. Another tore away the blood soaked grey tank top. Her body jerked as she was shocked.

"Again," the second instructed. Again, her body jerked, but this time the beeping that had been music to JJ's ears before came back.

For another few minutes, there was a tense atmosphere in the back of the ambulance as they drove. Bethany hadn't opened her eyes since she had gotten to her, which alone brought fear to the unbreakable Jennifer Jareau. But when the beeping stopped, yet again, she nearly lost it. This time, it only took one shock treatment to bring her back. Her whole body looked tired, and worn, but somehow, after all that, her eyes fluttered open, for a split second.

"Bethany, Hun, stay awake, okay? Just stay awake. I need you to stay awake for me, can you do that?"

She mumbled almost inaudibly something that resembled the word "sleepy" before her eyes shut, and she was out cold. JJ pushed back tears, and squeezed her hand. "Then... just stay alive... For the team."

"ETA?" the first EMT called to the driver.

"Minute and a half," she called back, taking a sharp turn like a pro.

As promised, a minute and thirty seconds later, they pulled to a stop, and rushed the barely alive teenager into the emergency room. JJ was forced to stay in the waiting room while she was being carted off to God-knows-where. A doctor strode to her with a look of determination set on his face. "Ma'am, are you her guardian?"

"For now, yes. Agent Jareau, FBI," she responded, automatically reaching for her credentials in her pants pocket. He held up a hand to stop her.

"Agent Jareau, we have to operate immediately, so if you will fill out some forms, we can begin," he said, hurriedly, holding a scrub hat tightly. JJ nodded, biting down on her lower lip. "And ma'am? We'll do our best."

With that, he swooped back out of the room, a nurse taking his place and gently guiding her to the desk. "Just fill these out?"

Blindly, she took them then walked slowly to the waiting area. She sat in a chair that's cushion was too hard to qualify as comfortable and just starred at the wall for a while. Even when her fellow BAU agents trickled in, she didn't budge. Reid and Morgan sat on either side of her, Rossi across, and Hotch pacing. Emily, she knew, wouldn't be coming for a while. After all, she probably hadn't even been contacted yet. She felt Morgan's hand on her shoulder, but was too far in her daze to do anything but sit there.

* * *

Hours later, the doctor came back into the waiting room, where every BAU agent, bar Prentiss, plus Garcia, had been waiting with bated breath. JJ stood first, hurrying over. She immediately notice the blood stains that soaked and spattered from his chest down to his legs. Her eyes searched his for any signs of emotions at all. "Well?"

He gave a small smile. "She made it through, although she did flat line twice while on the table. I have to give it to her; she's a fighter all right. She has some major injuries, the worst being the bullet wounds to her shoulder and abdomen. She had plenty of stab wounds as well, all missing major arteries. She has five broken ribs, one broken wrist, one sprained wrist, a fractured ankle, and a fair share of cuts and bruises. To be honest, she's probably one of the luckiest people I've ever seen. The fracture on her ankle is not as bad as we'd first thought, but she will still need a cast on it for a while. The break on her arm was worse; however we managed to set it correctly. She has stitches over most of the stabs, as well as the gunshot wounds. She'll be on pain medications for a while, but she'll still be sore when she wakes up."

The team let out a simultaneous breath of relief before JJ spoke again. "Can... Can we see her?"

"She'll be out from the anesthetic, but you're more than welcome. Room 211."

"That's the ICU," Reid stated, as if he had known that his entire life.

"Yes. Because of the extent of her injuries, we made an executive decision to keep here there until she becomes more stable."

When JJ took off to 211 with the rest of the team in tow, Hotch stayed behind to have a word with the doc. "What aren't you telling us?" he asked, voice even.

He glanced around with a sigh. "Sir, you have to understand, Bethany lost a lot of blood, just shy of needing a transfusion. There could be permanent damage to anything from her brain to her circulation. She'll be here for two weeks, at the least."

Hotch narrowed his eyes a little before giving a curt nod and following his team. His words flew around his mind like dust in front of a fan. All it kept leading back to was how Emily would react, and if Bethany could ever be the same again. The latter he highly doubted. Rossi, Reid, and Morgan stood outside the glass-walled room, Spencer's hands shoved in his pockets, while the others had their arms crossed. "JJ and Garcia with her?" They nodded. "I'd like to have at least one agent here at all times, just to be safe. We don't want anything more to go wrong here."

Rossi hesitated before asking, "have you heard anything from Strauss?"

Aaron shook his head, solemnly. "Be ready for the storm when she does," he said.

Inside the room, Garcia restrained herself from bursting into tears. She had a hand over her mouth within a second of seeing the formerly invincible, unstoppable blonde, now broken, and fragile. JJ had taken a seat in the chair beside her bed, and rested a hand on hers. "How could someone do this much damage?" she heard Garcia whisper.

She sighed. "I don't know, PG, but we caught them, don't worry."

"Why would they do this to her? What the hell did she do to them?"

"It's not what she did; it's them wanting other families to suffer the same loss he did, over and over. Trust me, Robert isn't right in the head, and neither was Aedon. It had absolutely nothing to do with her at all."

"What about the daughter? What's going to happen to her?"

"The grandparents are the next of kin, but both are in a convalescent home. She has an aunt and uncle in South Carolina who've agreed to take her in. For now she's at her friend's. God, I just hope she doesn't feel responsible for this," she said with a shake of her head.

Garcia sank down onto the couch across the room. "Me too..." she mumbled.

* * *

Half an hour of trading people later, they decided someone had to call Emily. Garcia called nosies, index finger pressed to her nose, Morgan and Rossi doing the same. It took Reid a second to realize what was happening, and Hotch just shook his head. They all looked to JJ, who was staring in at the motionless girl in the room. "Sorry, Jayje, but you get to make the call," Penelope said.

She twisted around, one hand fingering her sister's necklace, gaping. "Bu- I-" she began, but couldn't quite make a coherent sentence, so she reluctantly fished her phone out of her pants pocket and punched in Prentiss's number.

After the third ring, she picked up. "Prentiss."

"Emily, it's JJ..." she began, starting to trail off.

There was a sigh from the other side. Why, Jennifer didn't know for certain, but she thought it might be from relief. "Jayje, please tell me Garcia found something."

"Are you sitting down?"

"Uh, yeah. Spit it out, JJ; you're making me nervous here."

"We found her. She's alive, but barely. She flat lined twice in the ambulance with me, then twice on the table. She's got enough stitches for Frankenstein to have a big brother, a broken wrist, a broken ankle, and a sprained wrist." Emily didn't reply for a moment, and her blonde friend had a feeling she was trying to decide between staying with her mother or not. It was such a Prentiss thing to do. "Em, look, if your mom is still bad, we've got it covered here, don't worry. I just thought you might want to know."

"No- no, my mom's doing a lot better, actually. I'll try and be there tomorrow."

"You really don't have to. The doctor said she's got luck on her side."

"No, JJ, I want to. I'll leave tomorrow morning. What hospital?" she asked.

"Anne Arundel in Annapolis. Room 211."

"Okay. Thanks. ...And JJ?"

"Yeah?"

Emily sucked in a breath. "If... If she wakes up... C-could you tell her that I love her?"

Jennifer Jareau held back tears, fighting every instinct that told her to break down at that second. "Yeah... I'll definitely tell her that."

_

* * *

_

Please don't kill me...


	14. Chapter 14

_Okay, this seems to be taking forever to tie off, so expect another 2-3 chapters, probably. Here's the next one. It seems very repetative to me, but that could just be my over-critical mind. :/ Uh, thanks for all the kind reviews I've gotten, I think I replied to everyone's, but if not, don't shoot me! I seriously love all of you who read these because it means the world to me. Thanks to those who read my new story "A Long way Gone". This jumps a lot, so just bear with me here. Love you! - Taylorrrrrr. xx _

_PS- Hopefully you'll like this because it's October 14, and it's chapter 14, and 14 happens to be my favorite number, lol. I just realized this now. :)_

_Disclaimer: **You thought Criminal Minds was mine? Ha! Are you on something?**_

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Mom," Emily began. "I'm serious. I don't have to leave if you still think you need me here."

Elizabeth shook her head stubbornly. "And I'm serious when I say that I will be fine here. They have nurses whispering about the crazy lady in 405, and I have yet to see a nurse actually pass this room while walking down the hallway. Go see how your team is doing."

At her words, she felt a slight pang of guilt. She hadn't told her mother who it was who had gotten hurt, and certainly hadn't told her about Bethany at all. If it spared feelings, the youngest Prentiss was all for it. "You're sure?"

"Absolutely. Now go before I get one of those nurses to kick you out of here," she said, but a smile wrinkled her face.

"Thank you." Emily leaned forward and kissed her mom on the cheek. "Love you, Mom."

"Love you, too, sweetheart."

She picked up her bag, slung it over her shoulder, and exited the stuffy hospital room. While waiting for the elevator, several elderly people passed in wheeled chairs manned by family members or doctors. She gave them friendly smiles, and hid the fact she was terrified well. She was relieved when the doors opened to an empty space. She stepped in, pressed the ground floor button, and waited to begin the decent. Emily shut her eyes as she leaned against the back wall, letting out a deep, slow breath as she did so.

She practically did a mad dash for her car, nearly knocking over a bunch of people in her rush. However, she was in such a rush, she honestly could have cared much less. Her mind was so focused on the fragile state of the girl she left behind.

* * *

JJ jerked awake from her awkward position in a hospital chairs to see an aged woman with a chipboard standing at the end of Bethany's bed. She shifted slightly, rubbing her eyes sleepily. The woman glanced over at her, but said nothing. As she looked to Bethany, she saw she had shifted ever so slightly. Her hands had been by her sides when she fell asleep, but now, her right hand was over her stomach, while her left hand was tucked in the crook of her neck. That was good... Right?

The woman finished whatever she was doing with a dot of a pen, and then turned to JJ. "She's still not completely stable," she whispered. "But, as you can probably see, she's making progress. She did wake up from the anesthetic, but for only a moment. She's on some massive pain killers, so that could make her extremely drowsy and incoherent if she wakes up any time soon. Her condition is still not stellar, but she is making slow progress."

Slowly, Jenn nodded. "Okay. She had cancer a few years ago, will that affect...?" she began to ask, groggily.

She shook her head, graying curls bouncing into her face. "No, it shouldn't."

"Okay... Thank you."

She shook her head and left. JJ sat up from her horizontal position, leaned her elbows on her knees, and buried her face in her hands. She had sent Garcia home hours before, insisting she had everything handled and that she would call if anything changed, which so far hadn't happened. There was a hesitant knock on the door. Her head snapped up to see the agent stationed outside poking his head in. "Agent Jareau, there's a boy here, says he knows Bethany. His name is... Justin, I think." It came out more as a question than a statement.

She nodded, lowering her head again. "He can come in."

Justin shuffled into the room in skinny jeans and a loose t-shirt, hands shoved in his pockets and eyes on the ground. He seemed as if he was afraid to look at Bethany, so JJ forced a smile. "She isn't Medusa, I promise," she joked. "But, she'll be glad you came."

He looked over at her and nodded before looking over at Beth. "I feel like this is my fault," he mumbled. "Like if I had done something different this wouldn't have happened."

"Justin, nothing you could have done would have stopped Robert and Aedon from doing this to her."

"But... How could I not have known that two serial killers lived across the street from me? What if-"

"Hold on, hold on," she said softly. "There are no 'what if's'. You'll drive yourself crazy going through every single possibility, and trust me, this is reality and this is what happened. We can't change that. So, don't sit and blame yourself. She went undercover knowing her odds of coming out of it alive, so from where I'm sitting, she's pretty damn lucky to even have her life. This is not your fault at all. Exactly what you did was what you needed to do. You did the right thing, Justin."

He opened his mouth to protest, but quickly shut it, realizing there was no argument for that. Instead, he crossed the room to her bed and gingerly kissed her forehead. In her sleep, she took a sharp breath in and shifted ever so slightly. He smiled softly at her before turning to the nightstand, scribbling out a message on a scrap of paper, and leaving it there. "Can you give that to her when she wakes up? Tell her... Tell her I hope she feels better?"

She gave him a genuine look. "Of course. Hey, what time is it?"

He stopped in front of the door, glancing at the watch in his wrist. "Uh, nine oh-three."

"Oh... Thank you."

He simply nodded and left the room in his signature silent manner.

Jennifer rubbed her eyes one last time before getting up, grabbing her go bag and starting her modified morning routine.

* * *

"Hotchner."

"_Hey Hotch, it's Prentiss. Uh, JJ wasn't picking up her phone so I figured you're next in line. I'm stuck in traffic just outside DC. It's at a dead standstill and from the looks of it, it just stretches for miles. So, if I don't show up in three hours, don't send a search party for me."_

"...Um, right. Of course. Thank you for letting us know."

She paused. "_Is there something wrong? You sound distant_."

"No, uh, nothing's wrong. I was just surprised you didn't call Garcia or Morgan before me." He winced.

"_Huh_," she said. "_Come on, Hotch, I know you better than that. What's bothering you?_"

"It's... I... Jack is at Jessica's and I just feel bad about leaving him there. I really don't know how long we'll have to stay out here, so I don't want to burden her too much."

"_Oh... Well, if that's all, then I guess we're done here_."

"See you when you get here."

* * *

Garcia had traded off with her best friend when she explained how she needed to speak to Will and Henry before going insane. She had eagerly agreed, secretly, or not so secretly to the profilers, hoping her presence would make the teenager awaken. She saw so much of herself in that one girl it made her ego swell a little every time she heard a 'Garcia-like' phrase come from her lips. She had sass and spunk, as well as wit and sarcasm up the wa-zoo, but also had a heart of gold. She didn't seem to take heed of people's warnings of danger, instead faced them head on. She also seemed to take advantage of every opportunity that came her way. She didn't dwell on the past, but did try to forget a lot of it. There were cracks in her armor almost identical to the ones in Penelope's. They were in the same boat for so long without even realizing it. She had taken her under her wing, so to speak.

So, she had taken it as a good thing when Bethany began to stir, but it soon escalated to violent thrashings coupled with screams and sobs that made her call out for a doctor. She had rolled onto her side and was clutching it, face twisted in agonizing pain. The man started to call for nurses, then barked instructions like a drill sergeant before turning to the red head. "She rolled on a few of her broken ribs. We need to check to see that she hasn't unsettled them again, or punctured a lung," he explained in an annoyingly calm voice. How can anyone be calm when there's a girl lying in a bed, possibly dying?

"And if she did?"

"We'd have to take her into surgery to repair it."

She took a step back. Oh, God. She's had enough of that, she thought, putting a hand over her mouth. The bed was pulled from the room, leaving a stunned woman in its wake. For half a minute she could still hear the faint sobs of her little protégé. Her heart nearly split completely in two, but one strapping Derek Morgan rushed in just in time to save it. He wrapped his arms around her, and she in return buried her face into his neck. Her breaths came a little shaky as he muttered incoherently, probably trying to get her to calm down a little. He rubbed her back until she was ready to speak. "Tell me, Mama, what happened?"

Penelope couldn't look him directly in the eyes for longer than a second. "I- She was just asleep, a-and then she was screaming an-and crying and I didn't know what to do, so I yelled and a doctor came an-and he said she may have re-broken her ribs and punctured a lung, and... And... And I just don't know what to do right now. I... We... She means a lot to me, and the team, and I guess I didn't realize it until now," she stuttered, making large gestures with her arms.

His expression softened. "Hey, hey, hey," he said, slipping an arm around her shoulders. "It'll be okay. This kid is a fighter- she'll be fine."

"But she's just so damn lucky! Eventually that's all going to run our, right?"

"What happened to not believing in luck? That 'everything happens for a really good reason'?"

She opened her mouth several times to say something in return, but her words fell short. She just rested her head on his shoulder. "I just... I just really want her to live, you know? She's grown on me." There was a grunt in reply. "You know she texted me the whole time she went undercover? Well, right after that first phone call. She said she thought of me as a 'cool older sister'." She chuckled. "And that Emily was really over protective, and when she left that JJ was like a hawk."

He gave a short laugh. "Yeah, well, I see a lot of you in her. I can see how you'd get attached."

"So, you don't think it's way unprofessional of me?"

His grin widened. "Since when have you been professional? Hell, when have I been very professional around you?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right... So do you think she'll be okay?"

"Yes, I think she'll come out of this completely fine."

* * *

JJ was back on duty when Emily finally arrived, almost three hours after she had originally planned to make it there, and four hours after Bethany got out of emergency surgery. It had gone extremely smoothly, and the puncture to her lung did minimal damage. Emily, however, had no idea, so she was greeted with that news by her best blonde friend. "She had some emergency surgery on her lungs; she rolled over on some broken ribs and you can probably figure it out from there. Last I checked she was half awake, but I can't tell you much more than that," JJ explained as they walked down the hallway. Prentiss had brought the remaining team members coffees, and all had accepted eagerly.

"Right. Thanks, Jayje, for everything. I owe you one."

"Shut up and get in there."

She didn't need to be told twice. Her friend stopped outside the room while she stopped in the doorway. The girl blinked at her, weakly, dull sunlight reflecting off the neon green cast on her ankle. She leaned against the doorframe, fighting back tears. Bethany gave her a faint smile. "Hey," the girl said, lamely.

"Hey yourself." There was an airy snort. "So, four times, huh?"

"So they told you. Yeah, I guess even when I'm unconscious I'm too stubborn to stay dead."

Emily flinched at the last word, but took a few steps in and shut the door behind her. She crossed the room, her heels clicking on tile floor. "I am so sorry," she said, sinking onto the empty space beside her uninjured ankle.

Bethany waved her off with her sprained wrist. "Nah. We got 'em so itssall' good."

She smiled a little. "I know."

"It was my fault anyway; I shouldn't have been so hardheaded. I shoulda' seen it coming."

Emily's eyes narrowed. "Nuh-uh, we're not going to play the blame game. No way. This was one huge accident, no one's fault but Robert's." There was an awkward pause. "I heard Justin came to see you this morning."

"I was out cold so I don't know anything about it."

"I heard he kissed you, too."

Her forehead creased. "He what?"

"Don't worry; I'm just messing with you. It was only on the forehead."

There was another pause, this one only a little more comfortable. "Hey, uh Ag- I mean Emily? There's something I really need to tell you." The elder turned to face her, face revealing rapt attention. "When I was younger... When I was six, actually, I used to get hurt a lot. My mom took me to the doctor and..." she trailed off, but took a deep breath to continue. "And he sent me to get some tests. They got back and that's when we found out I had Leukemia."

It took her a second to recover. "Had, past tense?"

"Yeah. I had chemo for five years, and then it finally went into remission. A few years ago, after my mom died, we thought it came back, but we got lucky. JJ said I should tell you."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner? Why hide it?"

She shifted, wincing a little. "I guess because I didn't - still don't - want you to pity me. Yeah, alotta shit goes wrong on my life, so what? You grit your teeth; pretend it doesn't bother you and move on. It's not something I'm exactly proud of, either. Going through chemo and trying to still fit in is like wearing a sign that says 'I have a flesh-eating disease'. For years I wore a hat or a bandana and avoided pictures at all cost. When my hair started to grow back, I decided not to cut it. Cancer... It's real, and it's scary. I don't think I've ever been more scared than for the first few months. I swear death and I just never completely see eye to eye."

She shook her head. Emily couldn't believe it. "Bethany, you survived. The statistics say it's probably easier to talk your way out of a hostage situation than live through Leukemia. Ask Reid, he'll tell you. Honestly, there's nothing to be embarrassed about. You have every right to brag about stuff like that. Why the hell would you hide that?"

"I told you, I don't want your pity!" she said, exasperatedly.

"And I'm not giving you pity. I'm congratulating you," she replied, calmly. There was her Achilles heel- stubbornness, pessimism, and low self-esteem. It was so good to know the kid wasn't like Jesus anymore.

"For what? I have sheer dumbass luck. If I didn't, I would be dead by now."

"Have you ever considered the reason you're not? Maybe you're meant to do something bigger. Look, why don't you get some rest and think."

"Promise you won't leave?" she asked in a sudden quiet voice.

Prentiss felt tears press against her eyes again. "I promise."

* * *

Social Services came the following day, a man in a dark suit and a woman in a black skirt and white blouse. Hotch and Morgan greeted them outside of Bethany's room, having arrived after a goodnight's sleep in a hotel a few blocks away. The woman introduced herself as Carol Bartlett, and her companion as Shamus Dugan. Her face was covered in cover-up, her cheeks flushed pink with blush, and her eyelids a soft grey. "We were told to come here by an Agent Strauss and to speak with-" she glanced down at the papers she clutched in her hands, "-Agent Prentiss."

"Yes, of course. One moment please," Aaron said, stepping into the dismal room. "Emily, Social Services is here to speak with you."

The raven haired woman looked over at him with a smile on her face from hers' and Bethany's light, bantery conversation they had kept up since she had awoken two hours prior. Her smile faltered for a second before she nodded, excused herself and left. The two workers shook her hand as she reached them. "Agent Prentiss, there are a few things we would like to discuss with you," Dugan poke for the first time. "Why don't we sit in the chairs over there?"

They headed down the hall in silence, and sat in the hard chairs across from each other. "Now, we are aware how attached Bethany has become to you since... Well, you know. Anyway, we really want to make this easy for the both of you, which is why we are here. We have no choice but to place her in foster care until a more permanent family comes forward. You will be able to keep in contact with her at all times, but we want you to be comfortable. A home has all ready been contacted and has agreed to take her in, in Fredericksburg."

"Agent, her safety is of the upmost importance to us. If at any time you feel she is at risk, all you need to do is call one of us and we will arrange for her to be transported to a safer location. And, with the foster parent's consent, she is by all means entitled to stay with you in your home for short periods of time," Bartlett continued for her partner.

"What about now? She can't exactly walk out the front door."

"She will stay in medical care for as long as necessary, and after which she will be sent to her new home."

"All her possessions are still at the house-"

"And we will need them before she is released."

Emily bit her lip. She wasn't very keen on the idea of Bethany not living in the same house anymore, considering all she had been through. She had said outright when she had offered to be bait that she would do everything in her power to avoid foster care. Prentiss felt like just letting her go into the hands of the state would be betrayal. But, there were things worse in the world, she supposed. Besides, I still get to keep her for a few days every once in a while, she mused. "Okay, but, let me be the one to break the news to her."

Both of them nodded before standing. She copied and held out a hand. "Thank you for understanding. If there's anything we can do for you, don't hesitate to call," he said, handing her his card.

"I may just take you up on that."

* * *

_Thanks everyone. Let me know some thoughts. Private message me if you want details on a possible sequal. (Yeah, I know I have to finish this first, but still.)_


	15. Chapter 15

_Remember me? The one whose supposed to be writing this? Yeah. Good. I know I've been updating quicker, up until now, and I'm sorry this one took so long, but technically this one in within a week of the last one. :) It's by a huge margine the longest, without my little rant here being **4,495** words long. Exciting. I had half of this written for a while, but getting there was a challenge. I wasn't sure how to end this either. Anyway, next chapter will probably be the last. :( Hopefully I'll get to write more of "A Long Way Gone" along with a sequal to this...(?) This chapter answers a few questions some of you have asked me. It references to before the story starts, but you really don't need to know anything more than the fact that she was an ass to them before this whole mess. You see Bethany in all colors of the rainbow. Enjoy! - Taylorrrr! xx_

_PS- There are probably some geographical errors, here; please disregard them. And I'm kinda too lazy to check what is supposed to be in italics, so if I missed any thoughts, I'm so sorry._

_Disclaimer: **Dude, seriously, if I actually did own CM, this would NOT be on FanFiction, rather on screen with myself or Rachel G. Fox playing Bethany. :)**_

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen**

The two weeks that followed were quick and fairly uneventful. Strauss had easily agreed to let at least one agent stay with Bethany at all times- with paid leave. The girl had insisted she was fine and even tried to escape one night while Reid was asleep in the chair next to the window. As a bribe to keep her there until she was actually allowed to leave, Morgan gave her his old pocket knife, since his Glock pretty much made it look like a plastic spoon. Her ribs were healing, as were her other broken limbs, but the stab wounds were not. The stitches on three of them had not been done properly and had to be redone, much to her distaste. After that, it was soothe sailing... For the most part.

Emily was the one to break the news to her about her living arrangements. Needless to say, Bethany had flipped. Although she was not surprised, she still flat out refused to accept the fact she would be going to a foster family. Emily was also the one to talk her out of an angry rambling, in which she didn't hear a single breath for an entire minute. However tough it was, it was done and over with. She may not have been thrilled, but that's life.

The day she left was a Monday, from what she had gathered - keeping track of the days wasn't exactly easy when you slept for days on end. She squeezed her eyes shut as the IV was taken from her arm, and she went to go get dressed. It was a messy affair, not being able to stand on one foot, and having to get a tee shirt over a cast and a wrap on her arms. The fact that the shirt wasn't a loose one and the shorts were a pair of Daisy Dukes didn't help much. But, after many yelps of pain, and slight, high-pitched squeaks, she managed to get her clothes on without incident.

There was a sharp knock on the door just as she figured her way back from the bathroom to the bed. "Yeah," she grunted, finding it difficult to use a crutch when each arm had something hurting. It swung open to reveal JJ with a grim smile on her face. She stepped inside, behind her, Prentiss, and two well-dressed workers with blank looks. She furrowed her brows and pushed some of her blonde hair out of her face. She sat on the edge of the bed, starring at her feet. "So, this is it, huh?" she said, dully.

"Look, Bethany," the woman she didn't recognize began. "We found you a nice family. You'll like them. They have dogs, and plenty of kids, and a yard you can play in."

Her face twisted into a 'you're freaking kidding me, right?' look and she gapped at her. "A yard? Oh happy day," she bit sarcastically.

Emily shot her a glare. "Watch your mouth," she scolded, folding her arms over her chest.

She mumbled an apology, not meaning a single word, before the man spoke. "Agent Prentiss can take you there, if you'd prefer that."

"Whatever." Her words were empty and lacked the same meaning and vibe they once had. Emily sensed this, but wasn't sure how to go about gaining it back at present.

"Come on, you have to go out in a wheeled chair. Hospital policy," JJ instructed, gesturing to the chair a nurse had left just on the inside of the door.

Prentiss assisted her in getting there, despite grumbled protests from the teen. The unusual group of five swooped down the hall, JJ pushing Bethany, the social workers carrying the bags, and Emily bringing the crutches. It was silent all the way to the car, where she was reluctantly deposited in the front seat. JJ said her goodbye, with a hug and the direction to call if she ever wanted to babysit Henry for a couple of extra bucks. The bags were thrown in the trunk, and they were off.

"Beth, you need to be nice. I know you really don't want to go to a foster home, but that doesn't give you an excuse to be an asshole like you were before. If I get one call saying you're being an ass, you'll have me and Morgan on your case until you change your behavior. Clear?"

Bethany, who was starring at her hands, mumbled a "yes" almost inaudibly. Prentiss stopped at a red light and looked over at her. "Are we clear?" she repeated, more sternly.

"Yes," she snapped. "My God..."

"Believe me when I say I'm doing all I can to get you out of it, but until then you have to behave."

"Whatever."

"No, it's not 'whatever'. I need to know that you'll be okay there before we get there. It's tough to not have a family, I know, but you have to make do with what you have all ready. The whole team is just a phone call away, but you have to understand that we do have cases and we go away for them sometimes. Sometimes we can't answer. What I'm trying to say here is: are you going to be okay on your own? And don't even think about lying to me. It's my job to know when people lie."

Bethany looked up, out of the windshield. "You want the truth? I don't think I'll be okay, but I know for a fact that it won't matter. No one cares about kids in the damn system. You think I haven't heard the horror stories about foster kids? How about those ones who killed entire families at a time; do you think I've never heard about that? My bet is that I won't last a week because I'm scared. Most kids are in the system for their entire lives, and they usually turn out good, but I haven't. I won't last because of some of the stuff I've seen. Prentiss, please, I'm _not_ going to be okay, but what do you care, anyway?"

"Hey, that's not fair. I care enough to take you down there. I care enough to have you on my speed dial. I care enough to stay with you in the hospital for days. Don't play that game with me. You will _not_ win."

There was a long pause between them. Voices had been risen to levels probably too loud for a car that size. As healthy as it probably was to get that all out, the words spoken had still stung. "I'm sorry," Bethany muttered, fidgeting with her hands again.

"It's okay. Call me whenever you need me, okay?"

"Okay."

* * *

Another two weeks had come and passed at the Belle home. Bethany was all ready bored out of her skull, desperately missing her deceased dog, and annoyed as hell with her new foster siblings. All six of them. Mrs. Belle was nice enough, but quiet and didn't seem to have the time to pay attention to the older children except during meals. The younger kids were far to energetic to be left to their own devices, so she was often asked to baby sit with her older foster brother Brody.

The fracture on her ankle had healed nicely and she was left with just a wrap. She could walk and run on it without feeling much pain, even though the doctor advised for her to wait another week or two. Her broken wrist was a different story. It still had the bright colored cast on it for a few more weeks, much to her disliking. She found being ambidextrous came in handy, though. The stitches had yet to dissolve, but her doctor was optimistic. The physical pain she could handle, it was the mental side of things she had difficulties with. The night she was attacked was permanently burned into her brain, and she often had nightmares that ended with her waking up in a cold sweat. But, she told no one, not even in her morning texts to Prentiss and JJ.

It was a rainy night, nothing very special. Bethany sat with her face pressed up against the cool glass, watching the rainfall, tears stinging against her eyes. She sniffled, and rubbed them, refusing to outright cry. Bethany Grant didn't cry. Well, except for that one time, but that was for good reason. This was different; she didn't know what had triggered it. It was not going to happen. She wouldn't let it.

There was a very hesitant knock on the open door. "Bethany, sweetie, its dinner time," Mrs. Belle called from the doorway on the far side of the room.

She didn't even look up. "I-I'm not very hungry," she replied, barely above a whisper.

"Oh, well okay, but come on out if you change your mind." She heard her leave, and breathed a sigh.

Then, inspiration struck. In one, swift movement, she stood, grabbed her mp3 player, a sweatshirt, opened the window, and slipped out. She sprinted down the dark road, pulling on the zip-up hoodie, rain tearing at her face, while her feet pounded on the pavement. She didn't look back once as she ran, tears now blending in with the rain. Her sobs were muffled, and by the time anyone would follow her, she was all ready gone.

* * *

Emily sat back in her chair and laughed along with the rest of the room. Reid looked utterly confused, looking from one person to another. She shook her head, and covered her mouth with a hand. Suddenly, her cell phone rang. Still half-laughing, she answered, "Prentiss." The rest of the BAU, plus Garcia, quieted down a little, all looking over at her to see her face fall. "She what?... When did...? ...No, I'll be right there." She hung up and stood up.

The rest of the team all gave her questioning faces. She barely noticed until Morgan's voice stopped her from rushing out. "What happened?"

She glanced up, appearing like a deer caught in the headlights. "Bethany ran away," she stated.

Rossi seemed concerned. "Well, we're profilers, and I'm pretty sure we all quietly profiled her, so where would she-"

"No, I know where she went," she said, rushing out of the bullpen. She heard her teammates calling after her, but she knew where she had to be.

She drove a little faster than was probably legal, but could care less. Instead of taking her the usual few hours, it barely took one. Her speeding coupled with the time of night certainly helped. Rain pounded the windshield like hailstones until she pulled it to a stop on the side of a deserted street. Emily climbed out and jogged along the sidewalk, glancing around at the warehouses that were lined up. At the fourth one, she stopped only to run down the alleyway between that and the next. Sure enough, a girl was pacing, sobs audible for a few feet. She didn't notice the agent approach, not even when she was two feet behind her. Nor when she said her name the first time.

"Bethany," she repeated. This time, she wheeled around so fast, Emily had no chance to prepare herself for the barrage of focused punches to the gut the younger threw. After the first three, she tightened her stomach and took them without even wincing. After the next ten, they began to slow and lessen in power. The sobs became more pronounced just before she stopped all together, collapsing into her arms.

"Y-you l-lied!" she stammered, coughing and sputtering over the rain and her tears. "You-you s-said you wo-wouldn't l-let him t-take me. You-you said

n-no one wo-would t-take me b-back there. And... And you lied!" Her voice broke several times as she tried to yell, but with her head buried in the agent's arm, it came out more muffle than she liked.

"I know, I'm so sorry," she tried to soothe her.

Bethany found her feet again and pulled away. "N-no! You-you promised me! And you broke it! I-I hate you!"

Emily's face didn't waver. "Bethany, calm down. You're going to rip your stitches, and I know how much you hate hospitals."

All that seemed to do was stop her from yelling, but it was a good start. The teenager turned away, burying her face in her hands. "Bethany, please. Look at me." She didn't budge. "Look at me."

She whipped around again. "Why? So you can lie to me again? I trusted you, Agent Prentiss! I thought you were going to keep me out of that damned state house!" she screamed, sobs momentarily ceasing. "I thought I could trust you with this! I thought you had my back!"

She flinched a little at hearing her use her professional name. "And I do, Bethany. Trust me. I didn't lie to you. I said I would do my best to keep you out of there, and I did. I really tried, but Social Services aren't that easy to reason with." Prentiss sighed. "They're not hurting you, right? Because I will personally kick their asses into a prison cell if they are."

Bethany ignored her and started pacing again, shoving her hands into her drenched jeans pockets. A second later, she pulled out the pocket knife Morgan had given her when she had been in the hospital. She flipped out a blade and traced the edge with her left thumb.

"Put the knife away. You don't want to do something you'd regret, right?"

She stopped and looked over at her with bloodshot eyes. "Don't be stupid," she nearly spat. Taking a step towards the blue dumpster, she pitched it against the wall, then turned and sprinted down the alley, stitches pulling all over. After a split second, she heard a second set of running feet, sending her running even faster.

"Bethany! Bethany, wait!" she heard Emily yell through the splattering of the rain.

She felt her legs begin to give out, and her heart pumping faster than she thought possible. Within a minute, she was on the asphalt with arms wrapped around her. She began to sob once again, right into Prentiss's shoulder. "Hey, hey," she whispered. "It's okay. I'll do whatever I can. I won't lie to you."

Bethany coughed. "H-how do I kn-know?"

She pulled her away enough so she could look her in the eye. "You've gotta have a little faith. Now, come on, I'll take you home."

She took a deep breath before nodding. She allowed herself to be helped up, and walked to Emily's car. She climbed into the passenger's seat with her knees curled to her chin. When they pulled away from the street, she spoke. "Hey, Emily?"

She spoke so softly, she almost missed it above the rain pounding the windshield. "Yeah?"

"C-can I stay with you tonight? Please?"

She paused for a moment to weigh her options at a red light. It was either say yes, and let her crash on the couch till morning, or say no and have her take off again. "Sure. I think you left something at the BAU anyway."

"Thank you," she mumbled, right before nodding off into dreamland.

As Prentiss pulled in to the house's driveway, she noticed a few kids peeking out from behind the curtains with matching expressions of anxiety. She quietly got out and shut the door behind her before trotting up to the front step, now thoroughly soaked. She barely had the chance to knock before the door swung open to a woman with a bunch of kids around her, ranging from barely walking to young teens. "Agent Prentiss," she breathed, a hand over her heart. "Did you find her? I am so sorry, I just didn't know who else to call. Where is she? Is she okay?"

She held up a hand. "She's fine, she's sound asleep in the front seat of my car," she answered to Mrs. Belle's relief. "But she asked to stay at my place tonight, if that's okay. I wouldn't want to trouble you."

"Oh no, no trouble. Please, by all means." She stepped back to let her in, the children scattering. "To be honest, that girl really needs a more stable environment than this, not to mention someone who she can look up to. She really admires you, agent."

She smiled a little and stepped inside. "Thank you."

She shook her head. "Do you need a towel, or an umbrella? You're absolutely soaked!"

"A towel would be nice, thanks."

Adrienne Belle left the room, leaving in her wake a few young kids. Prentiss put her hands on her knees to get more on their level. "Hi. My name's Emily. Can you show me where Bethany's room is?" she asked in a sweet tone.

They didn't move, but their eyes widened. "Are you da police?" a little boy asked.

"No, actually, I'm the FBI."

"Do you have a badge?" a girl with huge brown eyes wondered.

"I do," she answered, pulling out her credentials. "See? Now, who can take me to Bethany's room?"

An older boy walked in through the door to the kitchen. "I can."

"Thank you." She was lead to the very back of the house, to a room barely bigger than the kitchen in her apartment with two beds pushed against separate walls.

"The one near the window is hers," he said, then left.

The small duffle bag was under the bed, so she pulled it out, and threw in undergarments, a pair of jeans, a green long-sleeved shirt, a white tank top, pajama pants, and some socks from the tiny dresser drawers beside the bed. When she was done, Adrienne was back with a dark purple towel in hand. "You know, she's not very good at sneaking out. She left during dinner, but left the window open, so Sarah went to shut it and found her gone."

"Yeah, well, that's Bethany for you; never the center of attention, but somehow getting there anyway," she mused, taking the towel to dry herself.

"She really needs a home. A bright kid like her is going to waste away to nothing in the system."

"She deserves it, too, after all the crap she's been through."

"Well, all we can do is pray, right?"

"Yeah... Hey, thanks again for letting her stay with me."

"It's really no problem, just... don't hurt her, okay? I've only had her for a short while, but I know she can't take much more. She's strong, but everyone's got a breaking point, and she may just find hers."

Back in the car, Prentiss wrapped the girl in a towel, as she had started to shiver a little. But, the girl remained sound asleep for the entire ride back to Quantico, even when Emily's phone rang. "Yeah, Hotch."

"Emily, did you find her?" he asked, sounding genuinely concerned.

"Yeah, yeah, she's fine. She's actually sleeping. Hey, I'm gonna stop by and grab the stuff she left, are you all still there?"

"Yes. Why don't you bring he up with you, Garcia says, and I quote 'if I don't see my little duckling right now, I will waddle down there and duck-nap her myself'."

She almost burst out laughing, hearing Hotch of all people repeat Garcia-speak. "Where the hell does she come up with that?"

"I don't know, but she's like a little kid who repeats everything she hears."

"Okay. I'll be there in less than ten. Oh, and we're soaked, and I'm probably going to wake up a rather grumpy teenager, just a warning."

"Good to know. See you in ten."

She hung up and glanced over at her, out of force of habit. She still had her knees tucked close to her body, but her head was resting on the door, and her arms were drawn up to cover her face and neck, as if defending herself from an invisible enemy. At a red light, she actually reached an arm out to whack away something that was not there. It was comical at first, then she started mumbling mindless sentences. By the time they arrived at the FBI building, she had begun to stir a little. "Bethany? Wake up, hun," she said softly, reaching over and tapping her leg. She was prepared this time, and caught the flying fist that came at her face. "Relax, it's just me."

"'m sorry," she mumbled, rubbing her eyes.

"Hotch said Garcia wanted to see you before we went home, is that okay?"

With a tired "mhm", they both got out, the younger much slower and sleepier. She had to be guided through the doors and to the elevators, then back out of the elevators and into the bullpen, where people were just picking up their things to leave. Penelope came rushing out to greet them, enthusiastically throwing her arms around the half-awake teenager, who barely knew what was going on.

"Garcia?" she asked, with a yawn. "My stitches."

She immediately let go and stepped back. "I'm sorry. We missed you, kiddo. You're welcome here anytime. Especially in my office if they're on a case."

"Mmkay," was the reply. She rubbed her eyes a bit more and blinked to try to wake herself up more.

Morgan stood up from his desk and went over. "Hey, Kid. How're the cuts?"

"Hurt like hell. The arm is worse, though. Sore."

Hotch came from behind Prentiss. "You weren't kidding, she really is tired," he whispered, making her jump a little.

"I'd be pretty tired too if I snuck out of a foster house, somehow managed to get miles away, then tried to out run an FBI agent."

"She did?" Rossi raised his eyebrows, a few feet away. "This girl, right here?" Emily gave a nod.

JJ, who had been behind Garcia, stepped forward and embraced her, more gently than her friend had. "I'm so sorry," she muttered next to her ear.

"Sorry? For what?"

"I don't know. Just... Not being there, I guess."

Bethany shook her head, hair sticking to her face. "You were the one in that ambulance with me. You don't need to apologize."

Prentiss quietly excused herself to go to her desk, where she grabbed the collar and leash. When she got back to the group, she handed them to Bethany. "He died saving you. He's a hero, and I think you should keep those."

She accepted it with a solemn face. "Never find another dog like him."

Just as Reid opened his mouth to say something smart, Morgan elbowed him hard in the ribs. "No, but you'll always have his memory."

She just nodded, starring down at the floor in front of her. "Emily? C-can we just go home? I'm wet, and I need to sleep." Her answer was a nod.

"If you need anything, we're always here for you. No matter what it is, we'll be around," Rossi informed her, gently touching her shoulder.

"Thank you."

The drive to Emily's apartment was rather short, and dead silent. The radio was, for once, off. Inside her apartment was barely any different. The only sound came from the shower running twice, and the hitting of their feet on the hardwood floors. Once both were changed into pajamas, they met on the couch. Bethany lay on her side, head on a pillow, blankly starring at the wall. Prentiss sat at her feet, also starring blankly at the wall.

"Emily?" her voice rose to slightly above a whisper.

She tore her eyes away from the wall to look at her. "Yeah?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure. Anything."

"Why did you do it?"

"Do what, exactly?"

"Agree to go undercover with me."

She smiled a little. "I had faith in you. You seemed to really believe you could handle it, so I went along with it."

"But... You didn't even know me."

"You're right. I didn't, but that didn't stop me from having a heart. I knew I could do my best to keep you out of harm's way, and I saw the determination in your eyes. I was right."

Bethany didn't reply for a while, just stayed there in silence. "What happens if I get moved? What happens if I get separated from you and the team?"

"You can't think like that, hun. Who knows, maybe someone even closer will foster you."

There was a snort. "Good luck with that."

"Well, we'll see. In the mean time, why don't you get some rest; I'm sure the team won't mind if you tagged along with me to work tomorrow."

She raised no objectives, so Emily stood, shut off the lights and went off to bed herself. As she sat on her bed, she sighed. She hated to see such a strong young woman be so broken. It was as if someone had kicked her puppy. No one kicked Emily Prentiss's puppy. _Oh, God,_ she thought. _I sound like Garcia. Tomorrow will be better... I hope._

* * *

Quantico the next morning was more subdues than usual. Hotch and Rossi were finishing up paperwork from their last case, JJ was going through case files while chatting with Garcia, and Morgan was being talked at by Reid when the two arrived. Bethany looked like she was still half asleep, but in comparison much better than the night before. Her hair was down and pin straight, and she was wearing the jeans Prentiss had grabbed, as well as the tank top. Prentiss was used to going on very little sleep, and was wearing a semi-casual, yet work appropriate, blouse and slacks.

Derek jumped up at the sight, relieved to get away from his talkative coworker. Garcia scurried out of JJ's office in a blur of bright pink and yellow. Bethany hardly noticed as she sat atop Emily's desk, swinging her feet lazily. Her casted left arm was across her lap while she leaned on her right. She opened her mouth to saw something but was cut off by Garcia who eagerly bounced in front of her. "Hey there, kiddo!" she said brightly. "So, I know how boring these profilers can be which is exactly why I'm telling you now if you start getting bored, come see me or JJ, or both depending on if we're in the same room."

"Uh... Okay?"

As if on cue, Hotch appeared from his office with a fixed look of nothing on his face. Dave looked like he could cry out of boredom, lightly banging his head on the wall of his office. Reid was reading the thickest book she had ever seen. Emily fell in step with Hotch quickly. "I have to take off for a little bit for some, uh, personal matters. I'm just a phone call away if she starts acting up," she said hurriedly.

He narrowed his eyes at her, but didn't ask why. "Bethany will be fine. In fact I have a feeling she'll only be seeing the inside of Garcia's office all day anyway."

"Right. Thank you, sir."


	16. Chapter 16

_Hey everybody. It's been a few days since chapter 15, and I just finished this one, so here it goes. What's the worst part about this one? It's the **final** chapter of Important Principles. It's been an amazing journey, I have to say, even though it's corny. I'd like to take this moment to thank everyone whose been hanging on from the beginning, because it means a lot. Also, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed because they made my day and helped me finish this. I can't forget the awesome people who alerted or favorited this little diddy. Thank you (x10000000000000000). You're the whole reason this has gotten to have a final chapter._

_For those who are close to tearing because Bethany will be gone after this, fear not because I have the beginnings of a sequal working in my head right now. You'll probably get some good Beth flashbacks, so you get to see her growth. It most likely will not be up for awhile, but nevertheless it will be up. I'd also like to take the time to advertise my newest story **"A Long Way Gone"**. It's way different than this, and has nothing to do with this, but all the same, the story will hopefully keep you just as interesting._

_For the occasion, I figured I'd better stick with tradition and end with a quote as well. Have you noticed that all (I think) of the chapters end with someone saying something? Huh. Not very original... Thank you all once again, and a million times after this because you make my day. Love always. - Taylorrrrr! xx_

_Disclaimer: **I don't own Criminal Minds. I have run out of clever ways to say this.**_

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen**

Life was as close to normal as it could be while she resided in foster care after coming out of an almost fatal brush with danger. Bethany was still bored as hell, and still hated living with six other kids, but her weekly visits to the BAU cheered her up for the better part of the month after she had run away. Even when they went away to Florida, Michigan, and Montana for cases she still went to Quantico to hang out with Garcia in her office. She actually helped on occasions when they couldn't find a missing piece, she voiced good questions that didn't solve their problems, but got them thinking in the way that would. She also lifted the spirits of the agents when she appeared beside Penelope over the webcam. It reminded them of why they did what they did.

All this and yet it still surprised her when JJ called to invite her to dinner with the team. Mrs. Belle had agreed easily, so she took the train into DC, where she was met by Garcia in a very bright green and pink dress, her red hair spun in odd twisted buns on top of her head. Bethany hugged her, trying not to laugh. She was nearly crushed by the sheer force the woman put into that hug. "Pennie," she said. "Can't really breathe right."

Instantly her arms retracted. "Right, sorry. Ready to go?"

"Yeah. So what is this all about, anyway?" she asked, casually strolling beside her 'sister'.

Penelope gave an honest shrug. "I have no idea, Cashew. Emily wanted us all to be there, that's all I know."

Raising no question to her choice of nickname, she continued her inquisitive streak. "So, then why did JJ call me?"

"I haven't a clue."

"Oh... Okay."

Meanwhile, Emily bustled around her apartment, picking up loose junk and trying to hide everything breakable from Henry's reach. Her best friend sat on the couch, keeping a hawk's eye on her son. Will sat beside her, Morgan across, and Reid sitting on the edge of his loveseat. No one knew exactly what was gone besides the first three. Dave and Hotch had a vague idea, but were too busy in the kitchen, getting out plates and silverware to ask if their hunches were correct. There was definite tension in the air, despite the illusion everything was as calm as could be.

The two men forced into setting the table returned and plopped down in the only seats left. There was a knock on the door, and Prentiss nearly jumped out of her skin. Taking a moment to compose herself again from her nervous teenager self to her normal, calm self, she headed for the door and opened it, revealing an actual nervous teenager and her favorite tech analyst. "Hey, come in," she said, stepping back.

Bethany awkwardly strode into the living room, taking a quick scan for empty seats before plopping on the floor under the window. Henry made a b-line for her, an eager smile playing across his innocent face. She scooped him into her lap, producing loud giggles from the little boy. "How's my little buddy been?" He put a thumb up in her face, and she smiled. "Good, huh?"

A timer from the kitchen dinged, and Emily disappeared, JJ following. "I didn't know you cooked," she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Emily didn't look up as she pulled a large pan from the oven. "There I usually don't, but I make a mean lasagna. There's bread, too. Don't worry."

There was a moment of silence before the blonde started talking in rapid fire. "So, have you figured out how you're going to tell her? What if she flips _or worse_? What would you do then? You never know how she'll take it, especially considering-" There were more questions, but most of them were too fast for Prentiss to comprehend.

Emily held up a hand to cut her off. "JJ! _Geez_, who the hell told you to run your mouth so much today? Cause I _really_ want to hurt them right now. You're my best friend and I love you, but, my God, sometimes you just can't shut up. I thought I'd just say it and get it over with, then duck for cover before she can react. We may be profilers, but this girl so more unpredictable than a bipolar three year old."

"So true."

"Can you put one of the pot holders on the counter, please?"

Five minutes later, all were called out to fill their plates. Once they were seated again, eating quietly, Emily rose to her feet. "I have an announcement to make," she stated, rubbing her hands together and licking her lower lip. "It's pretty big."

Penelope almost dropped her fork. "You're pregnant, aren't you?"

Half the room started to choke and cough. Emily's eyes grew wide as she violently shook her head. "No! _God_, no. PG, I don't even have a boyfriend. No, no, no, no."

The TA put a hand over her chest. "Oh. Well, spit it out then!"

"So, Bethany, you've been in and out of the BAU for the better part of two months, and so far you've only been in one foster."

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," she murmured under her breath.

"But, that's about to change."

That brought her from her sarcastic state of mind. "Change? What are you talking about? Are they moving me away? Why wasn't I told? What the hell is going on here?"

Prentiss lifted her eyebrows. "Are you taking lessons from JJ today? Geez. No, you're not getting moved, per se."

JJ rolled her eyes. "Just tell her all ready!" she exclaimed, exasperatedly.

"Well _fine_ then, go ahead and ruin the suspense." Emily shot her friend a mock glare before turning back to Bethany. "You're being adopted."

Bethany stood, placing her plate on the coffee table. "_Adopted_? What the hell? Who-"

"Me."

"You?"

"Yes."

"When-"

"Last week."

"Can we get away from two syllable answers?" Dave interjected. Everyone's eyes flicked over to him. "Now, Emily, have you seriously thought this one through? I mean, I know your heart is in the right place, but what about when we have to go away on cases? You very well can't leave her by herself for long periods of time."

"That's where we come in," JJ explained. "Will and I have talked it over and have agreed to let Bethany stay with Will while we're away, in exchange for free, anytime babysitting when we're back. You get your own room, too."

Disbelief seemed to be controlling the girl as she looked warily from JJ to Emily. "You're not kidding, are you? Cause this is some kind of fucked up joke."

JJ shot her a death glare for swearing with Henry present, but Emily shook her head. "We're completely serious, hun."

"How did you get it done so fast?" she asked, narrowing her eyes. "You said social services was a pain in the-" she stopped herself, noticing the liaison's pointed stare.

Emily smiled. "It's nice having family in high places. The name 'Prentiss' gets you places in Washington."

"So... This is real?"

The room was quiet for a minute, all trying to digest the fact thrown at them. But, much too soon the quiet was broken. "Yes. This is definitely real. Go upstairs, JJ helped me set up your room. Garcia helped too, although she didn't know it."

Penelope opened her mouth several times to try and find the right words.

Eventually she decided on: "So that's what the whole 'would you pick orange or green to go with black' thing was all about!"

Morgan snorted, running a hand over his head. Bethany glanced over at the stairs, then back at Emily, who lifted her eyebrows. "Go on, I didn't put a death trap in there, I promise."

Without a second thought she shot up to the second floor, taking the stairs two at a time, leaving the profiling team and family starring at where she had disappeared from. There was a thud, followed closely by a muffled "oh, shit", then a louder "it's locked."

With a roll of her eyes, Emily made her way up, the rest of the team following, Henry over Derek's shoulder. After a moment of rummaging for keys, followed by a drawn out pause for dramatic flair, the door swung open to reveal a swirl of colors that made Penelope positively glow with pride. There were thick black swirls all over the walls with neon green and orange ones running beside. On the far wall was a window, with the desk identical to the one in the old house, as well as the same bed and dresser on either side of the room. On the desk was a closed laptop, the photographs from Bethany's box standing on either side. The teenager took a step into the room, onto the hardwood floor, trying to take it all in, before she whirled around and threw her arms around Emily. She buried her face into her shoulder as the agent took a second to realize what was happening.

"Thank you," she whispered, so only Emily could hear.

"For what? It's my job to do this stuff for you now."

The team 'aww'ed before stepping away and letting them be as they were. Bethany sniffled as she pulled away, but no tears were shed. "You have no idea how much this means to me."

"I have a vague idea," she chuckled. "Just know, this whole team loves you. And you're family now. Forever."

**_Ambrose Redmoon once said: "Courage is not the absence of fear, reather the judgement that something else is more important."_**


End file.
